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Isn't it high time we started reading Charles Dickens? We all know his characters from various film and TV adaptations, and yet the books themselves look so big; the days - so short. But perhaps the time has finally come to roll up our sleeves and get stuck into a major work. On this eight-week course we will explore his beautiful novel, ‘Little Dorrit.’ We will also study some of Dickens's essays, short stories, and letters and ask how he managed to write so much stuff, while remaining such a moving, vital artist.

This course will include various approaches to studying Dickens:

+ Teaching will be conducted in seminars, so you will have the opportunity to share your own impressions of his writings with other students

+ Each week, you will have short 'quota' of reading, so we will work through 'Little Dorrit' in stages, together.

+ You will be encouraged to write your own short pieces about your favourite passages, and what they mean to you

+ We will also explore the role of public recitation in Dickens's life and work.

You may already be a Dickens enthusiast. Or (lucky you!) you a may be complete newcomer to his work, perhaps thinking of pursuing a GCSE, or A level or, a even degree in literature. Either way, I hope that you will join us to explore a writer whose books still have the power to move and enlighten us today.