G. K. Chesterton’s Appreciations and Criticisms of the Works of Charles Dickens (1911) collects the prefaces he wrote for an edition of Dickens’s novels. Chesterton, one of Dickens’s most enthusiastic champions, discusses each book in turn with wit, paradox, and deep affection.
More than conventional criticism, these essays celebrate Dickens’s exuberant characters, social conscience, and comic genius, defending him against critics who found him sentimental or crude. They remain among the most quotable appreciations of England’s great popular novelist. Download the free EPUB of Chesterton’s spirited tribute to the art and humanity of Charles Dickens.