- Mass Market Paperback: 512 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; New impression edition (Nov 1969)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0140430032
- ISBN-13: 978-0140430035
- Product Dimensions: 18 x 10.9 x 2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (118 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,300,160 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
An absorbing mystery as well as a morality tale, the story of Pip, a poor village lad, and his expectations of wealth is Dickens at his most deliciously readable. The cast of characters includes kindly Joe Gargery, the loyal convict Abel Magwitch and the haunting Miss Havisham. If you have heartstrings, count on them being tugged.
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Review
Anton Lesser reads with magnificent virtuosity. --Christina Hardyment, The Times
--This text refers to the
Audio CD
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First Sentence
MY FATHER'S family name being Pirrip, and my christian name Philip, my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
MY FATHER'S family name being Pirrip, and my christian name Philip, my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
59 of 60 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I spent most of my 45 years since leaving school doing my best to avoid anything by Charles Dickens, quite why, I'm not sure. A recent illness and enforced idleness had me rummaging around some books I had come by and there was Great Expectations. I thought I'd try just the first chapter, but was hooked from the first page. This is one helluva book! The pace, the characterisation, the plot, the atmosphere, the everything are masterly. But it isn't all misery as there are frequent moments of irony and typically English gallows humour. Outstanding, but it'll make you cry.
37 of 38 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Charles Dickens's acknowledged masterpiece, Great Expectations, is rightly considered one of the greatest novels of all-time. It depth and breadth are staggering, as it follows its protagonist, Pip, from his early childhood through his later life. During the course of his life, we encounter a vast catalog of raw human emotions: love, hate, jealousy, hope, sadness, despair, anger, pity, empathy, sympathy -- and on and on. The story is treasured and revered for many reasons. One of its main strengths is its plot: after a somewhat slow introductory section, Dickens puts his story in fifth gear and delivers a fast-paced and exciting story that gallops along without ever losing interest or clarity. The incredibly complex plotline, full of separate stories and incidents that seem totally unrelated to each other, but are then all harnessed together as the book heads straight toward its denouement, is also full of constant plot twists, which continue up until, literally, the last paragraph. But, of course, as with all of Dickens's major works, it is the characters that make the book. Like Shakespeare, Dickens preferred to have the story develop through the characters, rather than having the characters be mere set pieces inside of an overriding story. And what great characters they are: the perennially paradoxical but essentially human Pip; the bitter and mysterious Miss Havisham; the beautiful and haughty Estella; the simple and saint-like Joe; the kind and benevolent Herbert; the very human convict, Magwitch -- and all of the other wonderful characters. Dickens excelled in creating well-rounded, very human characters who harbored very real and very complex emotions -- that is, human emotions. We identify with Pip as he winds through his life, because we have been there, too -- the disappointments, the surprises, the loves, the anger, the sadness. In whatever way his story may differ from our own, it is still essentially human, as is ours. For all of his complex and paradoxical emotions and sentiments, Pip is a recognizably human character -- and that is why we love him and this book. A masterpiece for the ages, which will endure for years yet to come, Great Expectations is a great book that can be loved by one and all, for, at its heart, is that grain of simple truth that says so much about what is human in all of us -- whether we have great expectations or not.
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I have a handful of books I can read over and again and this is top of the list, it may even be my desert island choice. The descriptive passages are wonderful and the characters are so richly painted. Pip and Joe is the best relationship - some funny moments, sad moments and some really heartbreaking moments. Every time I get to the part where Pip thinks he is too good for Joe and Joe irritates him it makes my skin crawl. Estella is a wonderful character, cruel, cold and twisted but not her fault and she ends up in a sad situation. Miss Havisham - a truly creepy lady, what an excellent creation. The story is fabulous with such a great ending - who would have thought? This book is absolutely fantastic. Brilliant characters, described so well that the most unimaginative reader will have vivid mental images of them all and you won't forgot them or this book. Ever.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Great Expectations
A book on life in the 18 hundreds and what people and convicts had to endure. Another brilliant book by Charles Dickens. A must Read.
Published 9 days ago by vulcan
Great book!
Great time reading it! Perfect fit, no errors. I will certainly buy more classic and modern literature on Amazon. Recommended book and service.
Published 29 days ago by R. I. ILIE
great expectations
this book is very intersting, i love this book and charles dickens is the best author. studens that are doing gcse, should read this book because you will lear this book and will... Read more
Published 1 month ago by book reader j
Just about the best book in the world
This book has the complete lot, complicated, emotional, romantic, funny. It's my favourite and I'd forgotten how good it was. Highly recommended. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Janie
ok
I can say that this book is really depressing, nothing is right...
i think i prefer David Copperfield
also, i had the idea of the movie, nothing to do with the book!!
i think i prefer David Copperfield
also, i had the idea of the movie, nothing to do with the book!!
Published 1 month ago by Beatriz S. Sanchez Garrido
Different to expectations
I remember us studying Great Expectations as school, but only a few of the early chapters. I didn't like Dickens as a schoolboy, although he was often inflicted on us. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Mr. K. E. Varney
Great Expectations
Great Expectations is simply a wonder of a book. Unlike many people I began this book with rather low expectations of what was to come. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Madame Thenadier
Lesson of Life
Read this book as part of my O Level English and went on a trip to the 'pictures' as a treat. (Late 70's) The original movie I think was the best...... Read more
Published 2 months ago by A. Proud
Astounded!
Astounded! Astounded! I read this book and fell over with shock at how good it is. Unfortunately when I fell, I cut my head open against the kitchen unit and required 9 stitches in... Read more
Published 2 months ago by wendy jones
Dig Deep For Treasure
Dig Deep For Treasure
`Great Expectations' is, in my opinion THE master piece of Charles Dickens. Read more
`Great Expectations' is, in my opinion THE master piece of Charles Dickens. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Bob
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