The Cricket on the Hearth Author:Charles Dickens

(1844)Another in Dickens's "carol philosophy" series which includes The Chimes and A Christmas Carol.~Dickens is a master of twists and turns, vivid description, and the redemption of his characters. This novel is no exception. His detailed description of Dot, the young wife, draws you to her as warmly as the hearth she attends. Married to John, her gentle, simple, older husband, Dot appears to be unfaithful. Lovingly, John realizes that he took her from the limelight at a young age, and it is perhaps right to set her free of her obligations. But who is the Stranger he brought into his home, and what was the meaning of the exchange he secretly witnessed? Amid the hard-hearted Tackleton, the blind doll maker Bertha, her devoted but misleading father, and silly Tilly Slowboy, Dickens weaves a most beautiful tale of devotion, marital love and fidelity. No one exceeds his ability to draw a picture with words. Even Boxer, the dog, barks from the pages.--Submitted by T. Lemley~