British author Charles Dickens (1812–1870) was a titan of English literature. Among his most beloved works are classics such as David Copperfield, Bleak House, A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist, A Christmas Carol, and Great Expectations. He wrote continually about the plight of the poor and the division of wealth in nineteenth-century England, the heartbreaking circumstances of which he knew only too well. When Dickens was twelve years old, his father was sent to debtors’ prison, forcing the young boy to leave school and seek factory work to help support his parents and seven siblings. Although Dickens eventually began his literary career as a journalist, it is his endearing novels that have stood the test of time.