The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens

I just polished off another Dickens novel, his fourth, entitled The Old Curiosity Shop.  I won't attempt to retell the story, but it follows the travails of a man who loses his shop due to gambling debts, and his subsequent wanderings with his granddaughter Nell.

What I really loved from the story is what I love from all Dickens novels.  The absurdly original characters, the poignant stories, and the rich contrasts between all things good and bad.  Two of my favorite characters were minor ones, the young boy who works for the evil Quilp who loves standing on his head (reminds me of the Fat Boy from The Pickwick Papers) and The Marchioness, the young servant girl of the Brass's who ends up married to Dick Swiveler.

What I struggle with is the loose architecture of these early novels.  As with many of his novels, The Old Curiosity Shop was originally released in serial format, which perhaps led to the apparent disconnection of many stories.  I sometimes think his novels are merely a collection of wonderful short stories, rather than novels.

Any such frustration is taken in light of two facts:  One, I'm reading Dicken's early works during which time he was still maturing as an author.  And two, the novel itself was still an evolving device.  Although the genre had existed for close to a century at the time of this book's writing, the real advances took place over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries.  The format we know as modern readers simply didn't exist.

The book ends with the startling death of little Nell Trent, the granddaughter who devoted her life to helping her grandfather.  I've read in other reviews that her death - sprung upon the world in serial release - was one of the greatest literary surprises of all time.  Dickens actually received threats after its release.  It was the most moving moment in the book.

In closing, the name of the book seems odd (or perhaps I'm missing something).  The story begins in the shop, and much of the early chapters take place there.  But I guess I assumed it would eventually lead back to the shop in the final chapters, which indeed never happened.  As much as I enjoyed the book, I just don't get the title.

Next will be Barnaby Rudge, after some more history in the coming months.