A Tale of Two Cities

LARGE PRINT EDITION. Having secured its place in history as one of the best-selling novels of all time, A Tale of Two Cities remains at the very center of important Victorian Era Literature. It follows the story of a French Doctor who has just been released from an 18-year-long imprisonment in the Bastille. Doctor Manette flees Paris to join the daughter he’s never met now living in London. Struggling to survive during the French Revolution and what became known as the Reign of Terror, Doctor Manette does all he can to avoid the guillotine while finding himself enmeshed in the dramas that have ensued around his daughter, Lucy Manette. The novel portrays what life was like before and during France and London’s most trying political times. Charles Dickens writes profoundly on the struggle of the French peasantry, recounting their strife and fight against the aristocracy and the looming and ever potent wealth of the upper class. Paralleling the angst and animosity happening in London at the same time, Dickens illustrates the challenging circumstances facing both countries, weaving together a narrative that has inspired, petrified, and brought solace to readers over the course of the book’s history. With the undercurrent of political transformation, A Tale of Two Cities creates hope and the possibility of a new life in a time where such wishes were simply unimaginable.