Tale of Two Cities

“Robert Douglas-Fairhurst’s new edition of A Tale of Two Cities sets the reader down in the midst of Dickens’s vibrant life and times. Douglas-Fairhurst, a gifted biographer of Dickens, has created an edition rich in biographical and historical detail, including a useful range of Dickens’s related writings, as well as an excellent selection of classic and more recent Dickens scholarship.” —DEBORAH LUTZ, University of Louisville

This Norton Critical Edition includes:

• The first edition of the novel (1859) accompanied by twenty-seven illustrations, from original images by Halbot Knight Browne (“Phiz”) to cartoons from The Simpsons.
• An expansive introduction and detailed explanatory annotations by Robert Douglas-Fairhurst.
• Thematically organized contextual materials designed to promote classroom discussion. Topics include “Dickens on France and the French,” “Revolution and Aftermath,” “Living Graves,” “Learning French,” “The Composition of A Tale of Two Cities,” and “Theatrical Versions.”
• Fourteen major critical assessments of A Tale of Two Cities: five contemporary reviews and nine modern essays.
• A chronology and a selected bibliography.

About the Series

Read by more than 12 million students over fifty-five years, Norton Critical Editions set the standard for apparatus that is right for undergraduate readers. The three-part format—annotated text, contexts, and criticism—helps students to better understand, analyze, and appreciate the literature, while opening a wide range of teaching possibilities for instructors. Whether in print or in digital format, Norton Critical Editions provide all the resources students need.

About the Editor

Douglas-Fairhurst is Professor of English Literature at Oxford University and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. His books include Becoming Dickens: The Invention of a Novelist and The Story of Alice: Lewis Carroll and the Secret History of Wonderland.