{"product_id":"hard-times-paperback-1","title":"Hard Times - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eCharles Dickens\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\"It is said that every life has its roses and thorns; there seemed, however, to have been a misadventure or mistake in Stephen's case, whereby somebody else had become possessed of his roses, and he had become possessed of somebody else's thorns in addition to his own.\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePublished originally in weekly installments, \u003ci\u003eHard Times\u003c\/i\u003e is focusing on Mr Gradgrind's flawed model of upbringing and its lifelong impact on the wellbeing and destinies of his children. The novel, in fact, follows two opposing ways an individual can be formed. On the one hand, there is Tom and Louisa whose numerous misfortunes are predetermined by their father's insistence on knowing bare facts without reaching for the substance. They are ill-equipped for the real world and, as a result, Louisa suffers emotionally having had a marriage of convenience, while Tom intentionally devises to incriminate another for his own misdeed. On the other hand, there is Mr Gradgrind's student Sissy, whose guardian he becomes upon her father's disappearance. Despite Mr Grandgrind's scorn, she approaches things with a genuine sensibility that helps her to lead a happier and more fulfilled life. The readers are prompted to ponder throughout the novel whether Mr Gradgrind will eventually acknowledge his failure as a parent.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHard Times\u003c\/i\u003e is an unusually short novel for Dickens and the only one not to feature London scenes. Instead, it is set in the North and beside addressing the issues of education, it also exposes the harsh daily living conditions of regular working-class people and the negative side of industrialisation. The author captures the zeitgeist of a new era where the old and new ways have to coexist and where many are continuously being left behind either by being deprived financially or spiritually. While maxims and cold facts are effective for scientific progress and the operations of complex machinery, they are not a prerequisite for human happiness. The volume's solid subject matter is intertwined with the gripping elements of suspense that will undoubtedly appeal to a diverse audience.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe \u003ci\u003eLegend Classics\u003c\/i\u003e series: \u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eAround the World in Eighty Days \u003cbr\u003e The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn \u003cbr\u003e The Importance of Being Earnest \u003cbr\u003e Alice's Adventures in Wonderland \u003cbr\u003e The Metamorphosis \u003cbr\u003e The Railway Children \u003cbr\u003e The Hound of the Baskervilles \u003cbr\u003e Frankenstein \u003cbr\u003e Wuthering Heights \u003cbr\u003e Three Men in a Boat \u003cbr\u003e The Time Machine \u003cbr\u003e Little Women \u003cbr\u003e Anne of Green Gables \u003cbr\u003e The Jungle Book \u003cbr\u003e The Yellow Wallpaper and Other Stories \u003cbr\u003e Dracula \u003cbr\u003e A Study in Scarlet \u003cbr\u003e Leaves of Grass \u003cbr\u003e The Secret Garden \u003cbr\u003e The War of the Worlds \u003cbr\u003e A Christmas Carol \u003cbr\u003e Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde \u003cbr\u003e Heart of Darkness \u003cbr\u003e The Scarlet Letter \u003cbr\u003e This Side of Paradise \u003cbr\u003e Oliver Twist \u003cbr\u003e The Picture of Dorian Gray \u003cbr\u003e Treasure Island \u003cbr\u003e The Turn of the Screw \u003cbr\u003e The Adventures of Tom Sawyer \u003cbr\u003e Emma \u003cbr\u003e The Trial \u003cbr\u003e A Selection of Short Stories by Edgar Allan Poe \u003cbr\u003e Grimm Fairy Tales \u003cbr\u003e The Awakening \u003cbr\u003e Mrs Dalloway \u003cbr\u003e Gulliver's Travels \u003cbr\u003e The Castle of Otranto \u003cbr\u003e Silas Marner \u003cbr\u003e Hard Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eCharles Dickens\u003c\/b\u003e (1812-70) was a writer, journalist and publisher, probably the most famous British literary name after Shakespeare. His childhood hardship, after his father's imprisonment, put him to work at an early age. The theme of poverty and struggle has become a leitmotif of his whole body of work. He began writing under the pseudonym of Boz and had one of his most acclaimed novels \u003ci\u003eOliver Twist \u003c\/i\u003epublished while still in his twenties. His most famous character is, arguably, Ebenezer Scrooge from an allegorical tale \u003ci\u003eA Christmas Carol\u003c\/i\u003e - the story that defines Christmas traditions for most of the English-speaking world. Alongside writing, Dickens was also a publisher and editor whose journals\u003ci\u003e Household Words \u003c\/i\u003e(1850-1859) an\u003ci\u003ed All the Year Round \u003c\/i\u003epublished a number of major names of Victorian literature such as Wilkie Collins, Anthony Trollope, Elizabeth Gaskell and others. The author's fame gave rise to the term Dickensian that suggests things reminiscent of poverty and features satirical portrayals like Scrooge's stinginess.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 300\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.75 x 8 x 5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e February 29, 2024\u003c\/div\u003e\n                \u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAccelerated Reader:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n                \n                \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eQuiz Name:\u003c\/strong\u003e Hard Times\u003c\/div\u003e\n                \n                \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eInterest Level:\u003c\/strong\u003e Upper Grades, 9-12\u003c\/div\u003e\n                \n                \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReading Level:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9.3\u003c\/div\u003e\n                \n                \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePoint Value:\u003c\/strong\u003e 20\u003c\/div\u003e\n                ","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51753110896928,"sku":"9781915054869","price":16.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/f8676a90690c4695e4ae561bf77447a1.webp?v=1780012961","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/hard-times-paperback-1","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}