A Tale of Two Cities

About this book

A Tale of Two Cities is a historical novel published in 1859 by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. The novel tells the story of the French Doctor Manette, his 18-year-long imprisonment in the Bastille in Paris, and his release to live in London with his daughter Lucie whom he had never met. The story is set against the conditions that led up to the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror. In the Introduction to the Encyclopedia of Adventure Fiction, critic Don D'Ammassa argues that it is an adventure novel because the protagonists are in constant danger of being imprisoned or killed.

As Dickens's best-known work of historical fiction, A Tale of Two Cities is said to be one of the best-selling novels of all time. In 2003, the novel was ranked 63rd on the BBC's The Big Read poll. The novel has been adapted for film, television, radio, and the stage, and has continued to influence popular culture.

Subjects

british

british and irish drama (dramatic works by one author)

british and irish fiction (fictional works by one author)

children's fiction

children's plays, american

classics

comics & graphic novels

contemporary fiction

criticism and interpretation

drama

english fiction

english literature

executions and executioners

fathers and daughters

fathers and daughters, fiction

fiction

fiction classics

fiction, historical, general

france, history, revolution, 1789-1799, fiction

french

french fiction

french revolution

guillotine

histoire

historia

historical fiction

history

iiit

juvenile drama

juvenile fiction

language & literary studies

london (england), fiction

london (england), history, fiction

lookalikes

novela

novela inglesa

padre e hija

paris (france), fiction

paris (france), history, fiction

pères et filles

plays

readers

readers' theater

reign of terror

revolution

roman français

romans, nouvelles

sosies

storming of the bastille

war stories