Post by bookworm148 on Mar 18, 2007 22:41:02 GMT -5
Has anyone ever read this book???
Here's my thoughts on it: Caution! There are some spoilers! lol
I loved this book. Charles Dickens is seriously a literary genius. He connects characters in so many different ways and then plants the seeds throughout the book for you to find, a surprise at every turn of the page.
Sorry if I spoil this for anyone, but it must be said. lol. The chapter when Smike died was so sad that I literally cried. It was heart wrenching to know that he loved Kate, but never told her. He also kept a lock of her hair and asked Nicholas to remove it when he died and then bury it with him later, so that no one would know but he. The good thing was that Smike died happily.
The Cheeryble brothers, Ned and Charles, were so nice to Nicholas. They hardly even knew him and yet they took him under their wing and supported him and his family in so many ways. The brothers were exceedingly generous to everyone they loved. It was also fantastic that eventually Nicholas became a partner in their business.
I felt bad for Madeline Bray. Her father wasted what little money they had on spirits and was always yelling at her and ordering her about. The Cheeryble brothers were nice enough to buy her little paintings for much more than they were worth so she could make a living to support her father, which is how Nicholas and Madeline met. Madeline’s father knew the brothers, but not Nicholas, so he wasn’t suspicious. Lol.
Mrs. Nickleby, Nicholas and Kate's mother, was annoying to me, but I guess that's the way Dickens meant for it to be. She was so talkative and reminded me of my grandmother, always talking, mostly about nothing at all. lol. Actually she reminded me of Mrs. Bennett, the mother from Pride and Prejudice.
The end was a bittersweet one. It really gets you thinking. Ralph Nickleby, Nicholas' uncle, was Smike's father! He realized too late that Smike was his son....his last chance at love. He then proceeded to climb into the attic where he locked Smike as a young boy fourteen years before and hung himself. It's quite ironic that Smike, who had a miserable life, died happily and at peace, whereas his father, who had a pretty nice life....if you can call it that, died miserably, with no friends.
There was a name in this novel that made me laugh: Wackford Squeers. I would hate hate hate to have that name. I bet he got made fun of as a child. haha. This man was horrible though. All he did was beat the boys at Dotheboys Hall. His wife and children were no better. As horrible as it was, I'm glad Nicholas beat him with his own cane. He deserved it after treating all those boys so cruelly.
Nicholas fell in love with Madeline Bray, and they eventually got married, after her father and Smike died. Such a good ending to this book! Everyone came to the wedding: The Crummleses, Kate, Mrs. Nickleby, the Cheeryble brothers, everyone who ever meant anything to Nicholas. It was absolutely lovely that Kate married Mr. Frank Cheeryble as well. lol
To not read this book would be absolutely nonsensical!!
Here's my thoughts on it: Caution! There are some spoilers! lol
I loved this book. Charles Dickens is seriously a literary genius. He connects characters in so many different ways and then plants the seeds throughout the book for you to find, a surprise at every turn of the page.
Sorry if I spoil this for anyone, but it must be said. lol. The chapter when Smike died was so sad that I literally cried. It was heart wrenching to know that he loved Kate, but never told her. He also kept a lock of her hair and asked Nicholas to remove it when he died and then bury it with him later, so that no one would know but he. The good thing was that Smike died happily.
The Cheeryble brothers, Ned and Charles, were so nice to Nicholas. They hardly even knew him and yet they took him under their wing and supported him and his family in so many ways. The brothers were exceedingly generous to everyone they loved. It was also fantastic that eventually Nicholas became a partner in their business.
I felt bad for Madeline Bray. Her father wasted what little money they had on spirits and was always yelling at her and ordering her about. The Cheeryble brothers were nice enough to buy her little paintings for much more than they were worth so she could make a living to support her father, which is how Nicholas and Madeline met. Madeline’s father knew the brothers, but not Nicholas, so he wasn’t suspicious. Lol.
Mrs. Nickleby, Nicholas and Kate's mother, was annoying to me, but I guess that's the way Dickens meant for it to be. She was so talkative and reminded me of my grandmother, always talking, mostly about nothing at all. lol. Actually she reminded me of Mrs. Bennett, the mother from Pride and Prejudice.
The end was a bittersweet one. It really gets you thinking. Ralph Nickleby, Nicholas' uncle, was Smike's father! He realized too late that Smike was his son....his last chance at love. He then proceeded to climb into the attic where he locked Smike as a young boy fourteen years before and hung himself. It's quite ironic that Smike, who had a miserable life, died happily and at peace, whereas his father, who had a pretty nice life....if you can call it that, died miserably, with no friends.
There was a name in this novel that made me laugh: Wackford Squeers. I would hate hate hate to have that name. I bet he got made fun of as a child. haha. This man was horrible though. All he did was beat the boys at Dotheboys Hall. His wife and children were no better. As horrible as it was, I'm glad Nicholas beat him with his own cane. He deserved it after treating all those boys so cruelly.
Nicholas fell in love with Madeline Bray, and they eventually got married, after her father and Smike died. Such a good ending to this book! Everyone came to the wedding: The Crummleses, Kate, Mrs. Nickleby, the Cheeryble brothers, everyone who ever meant anything to Nicholas. It was absolutely lovely that Kate married Mr. Frank Cheeryble as well. lol
To not read this book would be absolutely nonsensical!!