Charles John Huffam Dickens (February 7, 1812 – June 9, 1870) was an English novelist in the mid 19^th Century who was one of the most prolific, popular and politically radical in the English language. He worked as a journalist as a young man before turning to fiction. His first novel, The Pickwick Papers, was a great success and was followed by one blockbuster after another.  He wrote at a torrid pace, most of his books first appeared as serialized chapters in weekly and monthly periodicals before being published as novels.  He had a genius for uncanny caricatures of “personality types”, which he tagged with catchy names and mannerisms that are still part of the cultural lexicon.

He was born into a family of moderate means that went bankrupt during his early childhood, forcing Dickens to go to work at age twelve pasting labels on jars of bootblack for six schillings a week. His exposure to the lives of those oppressed by the cruelty and injustice of the industrializing world drove him to depict aspects of society that had been shunted aside with an unprecedented level of detail and candor. His insight into human nature was well-rounded, however, and his tales are equally beloved for their qualities of generosity, faith, compassion, and triumph of good over evil.

Dickens married Catherine Thompson Hogarth in 1838, who bore him ten children. He separated from her in 1858 but did not divorce, maintaining her in a separate residence until her death.  He narrowly escaped death in a railroad crash in 1865 when all the first class carriages save Dickens’ plunged off a bridge under repair.  After the incident his writing trailed off, and he went on tour giving readings of his bestsellers, which were immensely popular and notable for their passion and for his ability to portray the characters in unique voices.