Dickensblog

Is 'Iron Man 3' a Dickensian movie?

Slate's Forrest Wickman makes a convincing case that the blockbuster movie is inspired by A Christmas Carol -- having previously shown just how much The Dark Knight Rises was inspired by A Tale of Two Cities. I like the way this man thinks.

(In related news, thanks to Christy for sending along another piece that traces the Dickens-Dark Knight connection.)

What's weird about that?

From an Atlantic article about "the literary figures with the weirdest obsessions":

"Charles Dickens had two ravens, two St. Bernards, two Newfoundlands, a spaniel, a mastiff, a Pomeranian, a cat, a canary, and a pony. Their names, respectively, were Grip I, Grip II, Sultan, Linda, Don, Bumble, Timber, Turk, Mrs. Bouncer, Williamina, Dick, and Newman Noggs."

That's quite a choice

A street in Kings Cross, London, may be named after either Charles Dickens, Mary Shelley, or Amy Winehouse.

'Mr. Pip' trailer

The trailer for Mr. Pip, in which Hugh Laurie would like to introduce us to Mr. Dickens, is now available.

Dickens for beginners

I haven't linked to David Perdue's wonderful Charles Dickens Page in a while, but here's a part that I just came across and thought might be helpful. For those who are new to the author and not sure where to start, "Reading Dickens" offers some shorter pieces and excerpts to ease them into it. Kudos to David for creating this valuable resource!

Angelou on Dickens

Poet and novelist Maya Angelou names A Tale of Two Cities one of her six favorite books. She writes movingly of her thoughts when reading it as a child: "Dickens, I could tell, would be a man who wouldn't curse me out and talk to me rudely."

Dickens's bookplates

Buzzfeed has a fascinating photo spread of "35 Bookplates Belonging to Famous People." Dickens's is #20.

Dickens, baseball, and Chicago

New mystery novel Curveball, by G. W. Kennedy, has a protagonist who's a Dickens expert and former Chicago Cubs pitcher. The Daily Herald has details, as well as some quotes from the author! Thanks to the Buzfuz e-newsletter for the tip.

Whoops

"Top English students reach university believing Charles Dickens is ‘just as old’ as William Shakespeare, an academic has warned."

'Dodger': A review

By Christy McDougall, guest blogger

A few years ago, the world learned, to its great dismay, that Terry Pratchett has Alzheimer’s. Well, it doesn’t show in one of his latest books, Dodger. Dodger is a rollicking romp through Dickensian London, with the occasional interference of some famous historical personage and occasional discursions into philosophical matters.