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Jan 26, 2015lukasevansherman rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
"I shall never regret," said Mr. Pickwick in a low voice--"I shall never regret having devoted the greater part of two years to mixing with different varieties and shades of human character, frivolous as my pursuit of novelty may have appeared to many." Dickens's first novel, which like many of his books, was published in serial form. Episodic and loosely structured, "Pickwick" is amusing and light, with hints of the darker turn his later novels would take (social issues, a court case that anticipates "Bleak House"). The influence of Smollett, Sterne, and Fielding is fairly clear, but it also shows Dickens discovering his all-embracing imaginative powers and deft character sketches. Not for the Dickens novice. Followed by his first great novel, "Oliver Twist."