Rating: 
Summary: Dickens masterpiece
Review: A number of unforgettable characters make this book a pleasure to read. Dickens's opinion of America is famously represented as young Martin Chuzzlewit and his sidekick Mark Tapley travel to New York and beyond in search of fortune. A must-read.
Rating:
Summary: Superb
Review: Along with Bleak House, my favorite Dickens novel. Awash with drama and vivid characters that you will care about, it has everything Dickens is justly renowned for. The American interlude is kind of strange, but interesting to see through the eyes of an Englishman, and quite hilarious in places. Better, in my opinion, than many of his better-known works.
Rating:
Summary: A very funny novel
Review: Besides "Bleak House", "Martin Chuzzlewit" is easily my favorite Dickens novel. Where else do you have an opening chapter (describing the past Chuzzlewit family history) that is so absolutely hilarious you find yourself rereading it several times before you begin chapter two? Where else do you have a character as funny as the greedy and transparent Mr. Pecksniff? People complain that the plot is paper-thin even for a Dickens novel and that the American sequence is an unneeded digression. Perhaps true, but I think the characters and comedy in this book overcome any of its shortcomings. While others point to better known novels like "David Copperfield" as the best to be found in Dickens, I think "Martin Chuzzlewit" tops everything except "Bleak House" (but then how could it, seeing that "Bleak House" is probably the greatest English novel of the 19th century). In closing, if you're new to Dickens, you would do well to start here--the book, although long, is fast-paced, funny, and, at the end, even macabre.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth reading
Review: Dickens goes symbolic after his masterpiece in frivolity, The Pickwick Papers. The characters are, well, Dickensian. His stabs at America hit home. The plot gets gummed up with cheese and smarm, and isn't made more interesting by the fact that the villain and I share the same first name. Not his best, but still better than the vast majority of writing that finds its way into print these days.
Rating:
Summary: Mediocre At Best
Review: I cherish the writings of Dickens. But I am sad to say this is (in my opinion) the worst book he wrote. But I think it only fair to say that even what I consider his worst book is good. Sadly, I feel that this book lacks either the hilarious tone of "The Pickwick Papers," the cynical edges of "Oliver Twist," the images of "A Christmas Carol," the superb orginization of "Dombey and Son," the unforgettable characters of "David Copperfield," the multiple dimensions of "Bleak House," the swift pace of "Hard Times," the psychological insights of "Little Dorrit," the memorable moments of "A Tale of Two Cities," the unity of "Great Expectations," the superb puzzle of "Our Mutual Friend," or the chilling terror of "Edwin Drood." The only good things I can say about this book are that some images are well drawn, there are some comical moments such as when Martin discovers that Pecksniff stole his building design, and there are some well done scenes such as the deaths of Anthony and Jonas. Pecksniff is somewhat interesting as the man who can not seem to give up his role as a father or a teacher. I will not say this book is a waste of time, but I strongly suggest that you make time for Dickens' other books first.
Rating: 
Summary: Pecksniffery and Mrs. Harris
Review: If nothing else, one can come away with images of use in your daily lives. Read this book to understand the hypocrisy of Pecksniff and Mrs. Prigg's interesting friend, Mrs. Harris. These two things pop up as literary references all over the place. Now I finally understand the "Harris" reference in Murder on the Orient Express!There are all sorts of deceptions and selfishness going on in this book, but by far, Seth Pecksniff is the most perfect character to be found of all Dickens' comic characters. There is a darkness in the profile of Mr. Pecksniff, but he is made to ridiculed, and Dickens does not let a chance pass to ridicule Pecksniff. I want to digress a moment, for Dickens did as well -- there is a section where young Martin Chuzzlewit tries his fortune in America. And there is quite a bit of anti-American sentiment to be found in these parts (a fact which caused emnity between Dickens and the American public until he made his 2nd and final tour in 1870 or so). There are two reasons for this: first, Martin Chuzzlewit simply did not have the sales figures of previous novels. Anti-American books seemed to be "the thing" (just like diet books are popular today) in Britain, so he went for that. Secondly, Dickens had just been on a rather contentious tour of the U.S. in which he had been trying to make a case for international copyright. You see, the U.S. was the China of that day -- infamous for pirating works of people from other countries. Publishers in America had been printing their own copies of Dickens novels at cut rates (because they weren't paying Dickens or his British publishers anything!) When Dickens tried to make his plea for intellectual property rights, these same publishers of newspapers did a hatchet job of Mr. Dickens' reputation. So, basically, Dickens had an axe to grind. In any case, feel free to skip all the Chuzzlewit in America bits. There is a moment of self-realization for young Martin, but it's not essential. All the essential action is going on in England, and Martin will return to finish business. There's also a pyramid scheme-like scam going on as part of a subplot, so now we've got two things involved in this novel that people think are debates of modern origin: intellectual property rights and bad financial info. Just remember, Napster and Internet stock tips are only the latest manifestation of old themes; at the very least, this book will remind you of that.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but not Dickens' best
Review: If you like Dickens, Martin Chuzzlewit is definitely worth the read. Like virtually everything he wrote, this novel is engaging, emotional, and intensely human. It follows a pattern that is bound to seem familiar to those acquainted with Dickens, and has a very Dickensian happy ending; but then, that is what we love about Dickens. There is still something to be said for virtue, and it satisfies our sense of justice when it wins out in the end. That isn't a very modern sentiment, but it is an undeniably good one. This isn't the first book I would recommend for someone wanting to pick up a little Dickens (Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield, Oliver Twist would probably all come first), but this is worth the read. I give it four stars only because I think it is second-tier Dickens; but second-tier Dickens is still first-rate.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but not Dickens' best
Review: If you like Dickens, Martin Chuzzlewit is definitely worth the read. Like virtually everything he wrote, this novel is engaging, emotional, and intensely human. It follows a pattern that is bound to seem familiar to those acquainted with Dickens, and has a very Dickensian happy ending; but then, that is what we love about Dickens. There is still something to be said for virtue, and it satisfies our sense of justice when it wins out in the end. That isn't a very modern sentiment, but it is an undeniably good one. This isn't the first book I would recommend for someone wanting to pick up a little Dickens (Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield, Oliver Twist would probably all come first), but this is worth the read. I give it four stars only because I think it is second-tier Dickens; but second-tier Dickens is still first-rate.
Rating:
Summary: Dickens best work, especially the character Mark Tappley...
Review: Mark Tappley, who is always 'jolly', and the worse the situation, the better opportunity he sees for himself to "come out strong"; is my favorite character in my favorite Charles Dickens novel, "Martin Chuzzlewhit": (here Jonas Chuzzlewhit rides in a carriage with the man he is destined to murder within a few days...) The thunder rolled, the lightning flashed; the rain poured down like Heaven's wrath. Surrounded at one moment by intolerable light, and at the next by pitchy darkness, they still pressed forward on their journey. Even when they arrived at the end of the stage, and might have tarried, they did not; but ordered horses out immediately. Nor had this any reference to some five minutes' lull, which at that time seemed to promise a cessation of the storm. They held their course as if they were impelled and driven by its fury. Although they had not exchanged a dozen words, and might have tarried very well, they seemed to feel, by joint consent, that onward they must go. Louder and louder the deep thunder rolled, as through the myriad halls of some vast temple in the sky; fiercer and brighter became the lightning, more and more heavily the rain poured down. The horses (they were travelling now with a single pair) plunged and started from the rills of quivering fire that seemed to wind along the ground before them; but there these two men sat, and forward they went as if they were led on by an invisible attraction. The eye, partaking of the quickness of the flashing light, saw in its every gleam a multitude of objects which it could not see at steady noon in fifty times that period. Bells in steeples, with the rope and wheel that moved them; ragged nests of birds in cornices and nooks; faces full of consternation in the tilted waggons that came tearing past: their frightened teams ringing out a warning which the thunder drowned; harrows and ploughs left out in fields; miles upon miles of hedge-divided country, with the distant fringe of trees as obvious as the scarecrow in the beanfield close at hand; in a trembling, vivid, flickering instant, everything was clear and plain: then came a flush of red into the yellow light; a change to blue; a brightness so intense that there was nothing else but light; and then the deepest and profoundest darkness. The lightning being very crooked and very dazzling may have presented or assisted a curious optical illusion, which suddenly rose before the startled eyes of Montague in the carriage, and as rapidly disappeared. He thought he saw Jonas with his hand lifted, and the bottle clenched in it like a hammer, making as if he would aim a blow at his head. At the same time he observed (or so believed) an expression in his face: a combination of the unnatural excitement he had shown all day, with a wild hatred and fear: which might have rendered a wolf a less terrible companion. He uttered an involuntary exclamation, and called to the driver, who brought his horses to a stop with all speed. It could hardly have been as he supposed, for although he had not taken his eyes off his companion, and had not seen him move, he sat reclining in his corner as before. `What's the matter?' said Jonas. `Is that your general way of waking out of your sleep?' `I could swear,' returned the other, `that I have not closed my eyes!' `When you have sworn it,' said Jonas, composedly, `we had better go on again, if you have only stopped for that.' He uncorked the bottle with the help of his teeth; and putting it to his lips, took a long draught." This most wide-ranging of Dickens' books is also famous for it's criticisms of American culture in the 19th century, or the lack thereof, as well as the lack of ethics, personal hygeine, table manners, modesty, and of any ability to accept criticisms of that nature. People get very hostile toward good authors, and spitting tobacco juice on every available object, animate or inanimate, was apparently considered an important freedom guaranteed by the Constitution... P.S. Charles Dickens was surely one of the greatest writers of horror, though he's unrecognized as such. I can't wait to start reading "Our Mutual Friend"... which opens with a father and daughter scavenging for corpses on the Thames. But if you enjoy a nice financial scandal, I think a fine companion to "Martin Chuzzlewhit" is Emile Zola's "Money", which also deals with financial corruption, having a "Universal Bank" of it's own to rival the "Anglo-Bengalese Disinterested Loan And Life Insurance Company"...
Rating:
Summary: Dickens does the murder mystery and comes out on top!!
Review: Martin Chuzzlewit gets its start much like any other Dickens novel--we are introduced to the rather blase main characters and the amusing minor characters, and Dickens slowly--and I mean slooowly--weaves the web of his drama. We meet the Chuzzlewit brothers, Mr Pecksniff and his daughters, and (among others) the lovable Tom Pinch, who is utterly devoted to Mr Pecksniff. "Another middle-period Victorian comedy of manners," we presume, and read a few pages at a time, until BAM! the novel kicks into high gear. I won't spoil the unforgettable final half of the novel for you, but suffice it to say that I read it ALL in one day, spellbound. Any would-be author of pageturners could learn a lot from the story of Jonas Chuzzlewit, masterfully spun by the greatest novelist in the Englsih language. Enjoy it, one and all!
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