At first it's a 6. And then an 8.

I finished MC in Dec 2005. My left ear went totally kaputt in July 05, and I spent a week in a Zurich hospital for treatment. With lots of time I restarted a twenty-year old resolution to get through all of Dickens' novels. First started with OCS in the hospital, then later did NN, and now MC. MC starts off sloooooow. Langsam. Devagar. The first 500 pages are about a 6. But then it gets going, and the next 282 pages get an 8. (Penguin Classics edition 1989). It was almost as good as NN. The real value I see in MC are the wonderful descriptions of the brother-sister relationship of Tom and Ruth. How people should really treat each other within families. Kind, generous, selfless, loving. Then there's the generous cheerful person of John Westlock. If I could absorb some of their qualities into my character, it would be a big step forward. And Mark Tapley -- "there's no credit in being happy if all the circumstances are favorable". A great philosophy! Last, I have to admit I saw a little of myself in Pecksniff as far as hypocrisy goes -- made me more sensitive to avoiding it, get as far away from it as possible.

My hearing came back 100%. Cause unknown. It lasted 2 weeks.

Now going through Bleak House. (Another slow start, but it picked up sooner than MC did). I'm now 9 for 15. Maybe I'll finish the goal this year. Then re-read some of the favorites for the things I can appreciate more now being 20 years older.

One fault I often find in evaluating Dickens is that it seems people have to expect the plot to be great. Sure, that helps. A lot even. But there is also enjoyment in appreciating the skill of the writing. If Dickens has himself an excuse to write, that's good enough for me.

Mr Swiss, Jan 22, 2006