A Tale of Two Cities (Classics Illustrated Notes) by Charles Dickens. © 1997 Acclaim Books. ISBN 1-57840-003-1. Paperback. Classics/Young Adult/Graphic Novel. $4.99 US. [ Purchase ] Source: local library

** This review is part of the 2010 Graphic Novels Challenge and the Classics Graphic Novels Mini-Challenge. **

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times …
it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.

Who could ever forget those haunting opening lines?

Back in middle school, A Tale of Two Cities was my first taste of Dickens (I’m excluding A Christmas Carol here as what child wasn’t exposed to that *grin*). I first saw it as an adaptation on the PBS television show, Wishbone, and from there I knew I had to read the book. To this day, it is still one of my favorite classics, so when I saw it at my local library as graphic novel format, I couldn’t resist grabbing it up for this challenge.

For a book of so little pages, I think Evelyn Goodman did a marvelous job of adapting and chipping away such a dense tome and pulling out the main scenes and plotlines one needs to grasp an overall story of hidden identities, family, love, vengeance, war, sacrifice, and redemption. While I don’t think a student could use this alone to pass a test or write an essay, it would definitely help one to follow along with the story if Dickens’s book proves a tedious read. Read more

Teresa

Teresa (nom de plume: Torrance Sené) is a self-proclaimed geek, a Janeite, a lover of werewolves and bad-ass angels, an aspiring novelist and an avid book reader who freelances as a web designer. You can follow her on Twitter at @eireannoir.

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North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. © 1998 Wordsworth Editions. Originally Published 1854. ISBN 1853260932. Paperback. Classic Fiction. 448 pages. $4.99 US. [ Purchase ]

Synopsis
Set in the midst of the Industrial Revolution, Margaret Hale’s life is turned upside-down when her father gives up his parish and moves their family to Milton, a city in the north of England. Milton is so much different than everything Margaret had been used to – going from the south of England to the harsher northern part of the country, where the people all depend on the cotton mills for their jobs – and she and her family have a very tough time adjusting. Margaret’s father takes up teaching, and one of his students is the proud Mr. Thornton, owner and manager of a local mill.

In a story not unlike Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Margaret and Mr. Thornton soon discover they have feelings for each other, but pride, bruised egos and major misunderstandings seem to be in the way of their ever forming a more lasting attachment.

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Courtney

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