After Shakespeare, Dickens is the great creator of characters, multiple characters.
Dickens was a part of how the whole celebration of Christmas as we know it today emerged during the 19th century.
Dickens had more energy than anyone in the world, and he expected his sons to be like him, and they couldn't be.
Dickens belongs to the English people.
The whole world knows Dickens, his London and his characters.
As he approached his 28th birthday in February 1840, Dickens knew himself to be famous, successful and tired. He needed a rest, and he made up his mind to keep the year free of the pressure of producing monthly installments of yet another long novel.
I've behaved badly in my life. I hope I haven't behaved as badly as Dickens! In a way, if you're a woman, you're not in a position to behave as badly, because you don't have the economic power.
When you live with Dickens for years, reading him and trying to present him as faithfully as you can, you can't fail to love the man - so the shock of his bad behaviour is considerable, even when you know it is coming.
The young Dickens was so alive, so self-confident, so funny.
Dickens is always full of surprises.
