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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.8
EAN: 9780140430769
ISBN: 0140430768
Label: Penguin Classics
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
Book Pages: 816
Publication Date: 1972-07-30
Publisher: Penguin Classics
Studio: Penguin Classics

One of the earliest and greatest of the Victorian Bildungsroman, this introspective novel treats London's bohemian and literary underworld and the romantic entanglements of its hero, Arthur Pendennis, with comic and uninhibited style. Son of a selfless widow, Pendennis moves from one disastrous romantic involvement to another on the fringes of the corrupt upper classes. Thackeray had slaved for ten years in this literary bohemia; the introduction considers the parallels between Thackeray's life and the novel, and examines the changes taking place in Victorian England throughout the years of the story.

Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Fun and quite readable
Review: Most people know of only one book by Thackeray: his witty and savage masterpiece VANITY FAIR. PENDENNIS, perhaps his second-best book, is certainly no slouch itself: a funny, rollicking Bildungsroman, PENDENNIS chronicles the adventures of a loveable young man who almost always manages to get himself into trouble, and his tribulations with the several attractive women in his life (including his young mother). There are some definite slow patches to the work, but for the most part it moves almnost at a rip-roaring pace, and it has none of the overseriousness that mars Thackeray's later works (such as the fascinating, but slowpaced THE NEWCOMES). This is Victorian reading at its most pleasurable, if not its most intellectually challenging.

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Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Everyone should read this book!
Review: This is without a doubt one of the funniest and enjoyable novels I have ever read! Do not let the length of the book scare you, Thackeray's brilliant and unique style makes it an easy joy to read. I admit there are some lulls but overall PENDENNIS will earn an honored place on any bookshelf.

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