Review: A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

“It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known”

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, ⭐⭐⭐⭐

It might not stay at four stars though, judging by my history of reading Dickens. AToTC is my fourth Dickens to read, and it seems that with each one, the longer the story sits in my mind after I finish the more I like it. I was telling Laura @bookishstardesigns earlier that it’s like they need to simmer a little while in my brain ?

Charles Dickens sure can weave an amazing story. This tale of the French Revolution was engaging and exciting, and each character was written with intricacy. If the characters were perhaps less complex than in some of his other stories (Lucie Manette, Charles Darnay, and the Defarges in particular weren’t very dynamic), they created spectacular contrast to illustrate powerful themes of sacrifice, duty, and justice. My favorite character was probably Sydney Carton.

One thing I’ve realized about myself reading Dickens is that the movies really help me get more involved in the story! I’m not like this with most classic lit, but it must have something to do with the way Dickens writes. I watched the 1980 movie version of A Tale of Two Cities as I was reading and really enjoyed it.