24 h 41 minAudiobook12 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 24 h 41 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the person you care for most leads you into danger—and you must become their protector?
Nell Trent brings warmth to her grandfather's London shop, crowded with old and curious objects. But his wish to provide for her feeds a secret gambling habit. His losses give Daniel Quilp, a cruel moneylender, power over their home. When their life collapses, Nell persuades her grandfather to leave with her.
They walk through the English countryside, seeking work, shelter, and safety beyond Quilp's reach. Travelling entertainers, a waxwork show, and towns scarred by industrial labour mark their path. Back in London, loyal Kit Nubbles struggles to build an honest life. Charles Dickens sets Nell's kindness against greed, obsession, and the unexpected generosity of strangers.
What you’ll discover
- A child becomes protector Follow Nell as she guides her grandfather toward the safety they both need.
- Cruelty with a purpose Meet Daniel Quilp, who turns debt and fear into weapons against vulnerable people.
- A road of contrasts Travel among entertainers, busy towns, and strangers whose welcome may conceal a selfish purpose.
- Loyalty under pressure Watch Kit Nubbles seek an honest living while supporting his family and remaining devoted to Nell.
- Sorrow beside eccentric comedy Discover how a tender journey shares the page with bustling comedy and anger at injustice.
Who will love it
Readers who love a big, crowded Victorian story with comic villains and sharp humor, a brave young heroine, and plenty of roads, inns and odd characters to meet along the way.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A lost child and a secret
- Quilp, his wife and his schemes
- A plot to marry Nell
- The gambler and the flight
- Showmen, a waxwork and a lonely road
- Kit, the Garlands and the single gentleman
- Through the black country
- Trouble gathers in London
- Home, memory and what the story is about
Who’s who
- Nell TrentA brave girl of about fourteen who cares for her failing grandfather and hopes only for a quiet, safe life with him.
- Nell's grandfatherAn old dealer in curiosities who gambles in a desperate hope of leaving Nell rich, and whose mind weakens as he loses.
- Daniel QuilpA dwarf moneylender and shipbreaker who loves to torment people and wants the old man's property and Nell's secret.
- Kit NubblesA cheerful, loyal boy who works for the old man, adores Nell and will do anything to help her.
- Dick SwivellerA careless, talkative young man who quotes songs, owes money everywhere and has a kind heart beneath his foolishness.
- Sampson and Sally BrassA grasping lawyer and his hard-faced sister who work for Quilp and will ruin anyone for gain.
- The MarchionessA starved little servant girl who lives in the Brass kitchen and whom Dick befriends over a game of cribbage.
- The schoolmasterA gentle village teacher who shelters Nell and her grandfather and offers a home when they have none.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 24 h 41 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 12 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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La bottega dell'antiquario
by Charles Dickens · 1840
A girl of fourteen leads her failing grandfather out of London, while a cruel dwarf hunts them across England.
ChallengingOver 20 hours to read25 languages
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In short
The Old Curiosity Shop is a novel by Charles Dickens, first told in weekly parts in the early 1840s. It follows Nell Trent, a girl of about fourteen, and her grandfather, who keeps a dim shop of old and curious things in London.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A lost child and a secret
The book begins with an old gentleman who loves to walk London at night. One evening a small girl asks him the way home. She is Nell, and she has lost her path after running an errand she is not allowed to explain. The old man takes her back to a dark shop full of suits of armor, carvings and rusty weapons, where her grandfather waits with a candle.
The grandfather loves her fiercely. Yet he puts on his cloak and goes out into the night, leaving her alone in the shop, and he does this every night. Nell says she always stays there and does not mind. The old gentleman cannot sleep for thinking of it, and he paces the street until the rain drives him home.
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What is The Old Curiosity Shop about?
It follows young Nell Trent and her grandfather, who flee London after his gambling ruins them. A cruel dwarf named Quilp pursues them while friends and strangers help or harm them, and the book weaves comedy, mystery and deep feeling.
Who is Daniel Quilp?
Quilp is a small, grinning, cruel moneylender and shipbreaker who lives on Tower Hill. He torments his wife and anyone weaker than himself, and he wants the old man's property and secrets for his own gain.
Why is the book called The Old Curiosity Shop?
The title comes from the dim London shop where Nell and her grandfather live. It is filled with armor, carvings and odd antiques, and it stands for the old, strange world that the two must leave behind.
The author
Charles Dickens
1812–1870 · English novelist
Charles Dickens was an English novelist born in Portsmouth in 1812. He lived in London and later at Gad’s Hill Place in Kent, where he died in 1870. His books include The Pickwick Papers (1836–1837), A Christmas Carol (1843), David Copperfield (1849–1850), and Great Expectations (1860–1861).
More by Charles Dickens
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