Rating: 
Summary: A Wonderful Book!
Review: Charles Dickens deserves two thumbs up for his magnificent creation, A Tale of Two Cities. This novel does an explicit job of foreshadowing and portraying the French Revolution in the eyes of many different people. Dickens' attention to details also helps the novel flow well and at the same time, create irony and suspense. For example, when Mrs. Defarge remained almost invisible, her stitching revealed a lot about who she was and what her plans were. This brought irony to the plot. I also enjoyed the symbolism throughout the story. It was thought provoking. When I read the story for the first time, I thought some situations were unnecessary and were dragged on, but as I furthered into the book, every detail that previously occurred started to make sense. It is amazing that an author could make all of these details have parallels and with so much precision. I also liked how he formed the characters. Many of the characters within the novel were clearly described for a good reason. Most of them had one other character that they paralleled with. It is not easy to develop characters that are similar to one another, yet also opposite. There were also many twists to the story that made me want to keep reading so I could find out what was really going to happen, but I do not want to reveal any twists as to spoil the story for those who have not read it. I would highly recommend reading A Tale of Two Cities to any person who enjoys reading a wonderful story. Just remember to pay attention to the details and the book will make sense in the end.
Rating: 
Summary: It was the best of times; it was the worst of times...
Review: Charles Dickens again succeds in bringing to readers another classic tale - this one about France during the Revolution, and the lives of a few particular people affected by it. Dickens intricately develops the storyline, and creates some of the most memorable and characters and quotes in literature. While leading the reader through a world of drama and suspenseful action, Dickens adheres admirably well to historical details and events. This is an incredible book and a must read for almost anybody. I only gave it four stars, because in the beginning, the story is somewhat confusing, since Dickens is throwing out a lot of strings which he creatively weaves together as the story progresses. This, however, can be justified, for the original publication was in serial form; thus, Dickens needed to keep the readers in suspense in order to keep them reading it. Overall, though, this truly was a pleasure to read.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Dickens Novel
Review: This book is great! I had to read it for English class, and I am so glad because it was a great book! Many people say it is not good because the beginning is boring and sometimes mysterious so you're like, "What's going on?" But if you read it through to the end, the ending is great and clarifies all. It jusifies the sometimes boring parts. Have fun reading!
Rating:
Summary: Unbelievable
Review: This book will forever be one of my favorites. Charles Dickens, in this book more than any of his others, twists and sews the plot in circles, keeping the reader in suspense and a state of unknowing--all while the tension continues to build to a climax. This is a story of so many topics. While the simple poor find themselves in a revolution attempting to oust the aristocracy for their wealth and luxury in a time of so little, Dickens focuses on the struggle of one man and his beloved friends trying to stay alive. And in their attempt, tales of utter hatred and cruelty take place at the hands of both sides of the Revolution, with the plot stuck between the two. Forgiveness, sacrifice, devotion....the novel strikes upon so many human emotions. And the ending--the ending you will never forget. It will impact and inspire you. Dickens has a beautiful style of writing for audiences. Reading the words at face value tells a terrific story. But Dickens always has a second or third meaning to them all. In this story he comments upon humanity itself, and in that way, we can all learn something of ourselves. I highly recommend this novel. Wow.
Rating:
Summary: "It was the best of books, it was the worst of books."
Review: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." Perhaps no first line of a book describes the book better than A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. This novel really is a mix of good and bad. It all starts with Dr. Manette, who, after being 18 years in jail, is retrived from France by his daughter Lucie and an old friend named Mr. Lorry. The Manettes live safely in England, where Lucie meets Charles Darnay, a man who herself, her father and Mr. Lorry were testifying against at his trial of treason. Lucie and Charles fall in love, devasting Carton, who loves Lucie and was Charles' lawyer, and get married unaware that Charles' family put Lucie's father in jail. One of Darnay's old servants is thrown in jail back in France, so Charles goes there, during the revolution and gets himself thrown in jail. The Defarges, wineshop owners in France who were taking care of Dr. Manette, are after Charles and his new family because of a deep dark secret that Madame Defarge holds against the family. This book holds much info, many names, dates and places, but the reader catches on quickly. The characters seem to constantly move back and forth from France to England, and the story junps back and forth from the Manettes and the Defarges. Dickens makes the transitions from person to person, and place to place easy for the reader to understand by adding tags to the characters and introducing the setting in the beginning of the chapters. One problem is the length. The book seems to drag on. The chapter entitled "Hundreds of People" repeats the same phrase or idea over and over again wearing out its initial symbolism. Granted A Tale of Two Cities could not be condensed into 20 pages, but Dickens pushes the reader's attention span and the use of details to the extreme. There is such a thing as too many details. One character that seems too "lady-like" is Lucie Manette. Her constant fainting and crying make her an unlikeable character, and Madame Defarge, the tyrant, is more likeable. Overall, A Tale of Two Cities is a masterpiece. It is a reflection of Dicken's genius and a period of time lost to us, but remembered through the pages of this novel.
Rating:
Summary: Deserves its Title as a Classic
Review: I chose this book to read as I recovered from surgery. I figured if there was ever a time when I would have the patience for a Victorian book that has been dubbed a classic by everyone, this was the time. I definitely needed the patience. The book begins with the famous line everybody knows, even if they don't know the source: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." Unfortunately the book quickly mires down after that. It is not that little occurs; the book is actually full of action, side plots, etc. But it is also overfull of Victorian-era florid prose. The reader gets a full dose of adjectives, but those adjectives rarely add up to a vivid picture. Also, Dickens is a product of his times and the age-old Anglo-French rivalry is in full evidence in this book. The French people who have spent significant time in England are all good people. The French people who remained in France are uniformly evil. With one exception, the English people, be they drunkards, grave robbers or stuffy bankers are all noble at heart. However, the ending truly saves the entire book and turns my review from a pan to a rave. The ending is heartrending, beautiful, exciting, and bittersweet. The vivid imagery of people on the way to the guillotine, making their escape, or waiting to watch others be executed makes the picture leap from the page and makes the reader rip to the next page as one page comes to an end. I therefore recommend that you sit down with this book when you have large chunks of time to devote to it, don't give up on the book after the first hundred or even two hundred pages but keep reading. You will be rewarded.
Rating:
Summary: all you would expect from Charles Dickens, and more
Review: I have been reading this book for a long long time, and I can truthfully say that it is the most difficult book that I have ever read. I spent a whole month reading, and all i could finish was one-eighth of it. That time was no wasted though. Tale of two cities has reminded me of my childhood books, not for the text, but for the way i see the surroundings. A picture book barely describes the setting, but that does not matter, because the pictures show what the setting is like. Tale of Two cities may be a book filled with words, but the words that Dickens writes paints a picture that is just as clear as any photograph. This is definately a book to buy if you have the brains and the time. Don't pick this book up if you don't like puzzles, because parts of it will even confuse the smartest teachers. Gripping story that will drive you to the edge of your seat, if you don't mind going back and reading a passage over and over again. My friends advised meto just read and ignore the parts that i didn't understand, but if I did that , I wouldn't be reading. If you enjoy this book, you should read Great Expectations, which is another great piece of work by Charles Dickens, about a growing boy, out to persue his dreams.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good
Review: The story starts off with Lucie going to Paris to find he lost father. When she finds her father he is a completely unstable man straight from prison. She takes him right back to England and five years later they are back in Paris again. They are there for the trial of Charles Darnay who is being accused of being a spy for France and the U.S. He is doomed to die when Sydney Carton says that the identification of Darnay as a spy might not have been correct since he himself looks much like Darnay. After saving Darnay he meets Lucie who he begins to love. He pronounces his love but she has begun to love Darnay and they soon get married. After their honeymoon he decides to go back to France to save a servant of his who has been imprisoned because he was called a spy. Upon his arrival in France in Paris he is arrested because he is the son of a hated noble in Paris. He is sentenced to death when Lucie and Sydney and her father come to France to see what they can do to save Lucies husband. When they are assured that he wont get out this time Sydney sacrifices his life and takes Darnay's place on death row.
Rating:
Summary: A Tale of Two Cities in Review
Review: Although the book was a bit confusing and required some concentration in order to follow the story, it was a very good book. The two plots that are carried through out the book are interwoven at the most interesting places and at the end everything finally falls into place. A Tale of Two Cities, is a book that is well worth taking the time to read. The reader gains a great insight into the horrors of the French Revolution, yet one can see that it is possible to turn your past pain and suffering into a deep rooted strenght, such as Doctor Manette does as he tries to rescue Chalers from prison, that will carry you and the ones you love to the otherside of an extreme problem. The book covers a wide range of human emotions from extreme sorrow to profound joy to deep respect. It is so heart warming to see such family devotion, as Lucie shows in her care for her father, as well as to see a desire to go against the odds to protect those which you hold dear, even when it means giving your life for the sake of someone else. Dickens brings the reader into the very pages and events of the book which such descriptive language that the reader is able to see everything in its most intimate details. He gives the Defarges the most distinguishable little quirks that make them stand out in your mind. The other characters have their own little ways about them to make them unforgetable. The story shows just how ironic life can be in all of its small twists and turns, such as Doctor Manette's manuscript is the evidence that gets his much beloved son-in-law sentenced to death; even when he swore to never have anything to do with the Evermonde family ever again, his duaghter marries one, and he becomes greatly endeared to the doctor's heart. The want of revenge and protectiong is what drives the book all the way through and under it all, some of the charcters wish only to find out what they are truly capable of and want to make something of thier lives. All of which is still true to this day.
~A Merch High School Student
Rating: 
Summary: No better than any other novel
Review: While cultural pundits try to convince you that some literature is better than other literature, the truth is that all art is relative to individial tastes. Thus, it doesn't make any sense to think that a novel like this one is really any better than say, Michael Crichton or Stephen King. Aesthetic standards can't be grounded. Thus, don't listen to anyone who tries to distinguish between "serious" works of literature like this one and allegedly "lesser" novels. The distinction is entirely illusory, because no novels are "better" than any others, and the concept of a "great novel" is an intellectual hoax.
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