Synopses & Reviews
Antonio runs a bakery in the fashionable area of London, yet still he is distressed by the poverty he sees all around him: But among the poor, ignorance is a greater curse than plague or fire. There the divide between the classes looms large. The absence of learning and want of knowledge is a constant cause of misery among the downtrodden. Ignorance is the reason the poor live - that is to say, they have not yet died - in ruinous places on dangerous streets that are avoided by all but those who live there.” Mentored in his youth by the wealthy patron Octavius Joy, Antonio was apprenticed to a baker and able to improve his station through this opportunity. So his heart is deeply moved when, on a frigid winters night, Christopher Spriggs and his four-year-old niece Ruby characters that we first met in The Final Recollections of Charles Dickens arrive on his doorstep. Having suffered the loss of her mother one year previous, the child is in desperate need of food, shelter, and as Antonio can feel firsthand, a way out of their crushing poverty.
He takes them both under his wing and watches as they blossom under his tutelage. Ruby grows into a smart, precocious teenager, instilled with a love of books and learning by the everpresent Octavius Joy. But shell discover that a life of learning and comfort and security is not enough of a barrier against the machinations of life in nineteenth century London, and soon shell have new challenges to face to become the woman her mother wanted her to be.
With gorgeous prose brimming with the atmosphere of historical London, The Legacy of Charles Dickens is wonderfully infused with everything the famous author believed in: education, literacy, the need to support the lower classes, and the redemption found in the strong bond of community. The novel is filled with the influence of his journalism and his classic Oliver Twist, as well as a deeply felt love story, an unpleasant villain, a full range of other Dickensian characters, and the unequaled passion of Dickenss social conscience.
Review
Praise for The Final Recollections of Charles Dickens:
*A Publisher's Weekly Choice for Book of the Week:
This beautifully crafted historical novel by the prolific Hauser
delivers a crisp, colorful narrative with vivid pictures of Londons rich and poor, as well as a suspenseful, perilous drama in the style of Dickens.” Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
Charles Dickens still has one more story to tell. And what a story it isfit for the plot of a classic Dickens composition
Hauser's mastery of Dickensian language and dramatic flair creates engaging historical fiction, and his depiction of Dickens's social philosophy of championing the poor will resonate with contemporary readers who are concerned about income inequality. Fans of the 19th-century author or of well-researched historical fiction will savor this work.” Library Journal
"In many ways, the story is illuminating (especially about Dickens' early career, before he married Catherine Hogarth, in 1836.).... Hauser is right to speculate about one of the world's greatest novelists and suggest that an early event in his life subsequently shaped the rest of his years as well as his brilliant writing career... Thomas Hauser should be given credit for assimilating and then processing so much of Charles Dickens' lifean enormous task by any standards." Counterpunch
Hauser has taken some liberties with Dickens's timeline, but has also included key biographical detailssuch as his unhappy marriage to Catherine Hogarththat will delight devoted students of the writer. What is even more delightful is how truly Dickensian Hauser's novel proves to be, exploring not only this imagined incident but also the real man's favorite themes of London life and class inequalities.” Shelf Awareness
Hauser brings the culture and vibrant personalities of Dickenss world back to life” The New Criterion
Praise for Thomas Hauser
For the last few years Booklist has heaped praise on Hausers annual look back at the previous year in boxing. This year is no different. Why is Hauser one of the best sports journalists working today? He is an unashamed lover of boxing but never hesitates in exposing its flaws
Wonderful writing from a world-class journalist.” Booklist, Starred Review
Praise for Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times
Hauser compiles opinions from a wide-ranging roster of interviewees to create a portrait of the controversial boxing champ that bristles with insights, jabs and tributes.” Publishers Weekly
A detailed, if hagiographic, account of Ali's public career and private life. Hauser (author of one of the best books ever on the fight game, 1985's Black Lights) is an obvious and uncritical fan of Ali's, whom he apotheosizes early on as the most recognizable person on earth.'
Hauser does a good job of marshaling a wealth of facts into a cohesive whole and providing behind-the-scenes glimpses of a ring lion in the autumn, if not winter, of his years.” Kirkus
The first definitive biography of...the boxer who transcended sports as no other athlete ever has.” The New York Times Book Review
How many Muhammad Ali's have we seen during his tempestuous ride through 30 years of roller-coaster American history? Ali rode that roller coaster with zest and pride and humor and class.” Chicago Tribune
Compelling...I doubt that we shall ever see a more comprehensive portrait of this extraordinary athlete.” The Sporting News
A new generation is about to rediscover this exemplar of the Zeitgeist of the 1960s....The awesome pressures mortals can't imagine...were somehow converted into motivation by Ali. And this comprehensive, poignant, and knowing book is sure to be a catalyst of his coming renaissance....Ali was bigger than boxing, and so is this book.” The Nation
A measuring stick for at least three decades of America -- who we were, how we changed and what we became.” New York Post
Extensive and fascinating detail; first-rate....The triumph of the "witness" technique in biography may be judged complete.” New York Daily News
A magnificent book [about] a life that needs to be understood whether you care a whit about boxing or not.” The Boston Globe
You're liable to find Muhammad Ali in the sports section of your bookstore, and that's certainly one place it belongs. Ali was a massive presence in sports for decades. But this book should be in the biography section as well, because like all good biography, it teaches us something about what it means to try to make a meaningful life in this slippery world. And it should be in the history section, because Ali has been a force in contemporary events second to no American.” National Public Radio
Missing
Devastating.” The New York Times Book Review
Synopsis
An evocative historical novel that explores the rising influence of Dickenss work in mid-19th century London through the journey of a young womans struggle against poverty and injustice.
In the winter of 1836, a young journalist named Charles Dickens held an infant in his arms. Only eight months of age, Ruby Spriggs was living under the most deplorable conditions that existed in London. Crushing poverty seemed her only future.
Through the intervention of kind patrons, the child blossoms into a young woman instilled with a love of learning and books. But the forces that Dickens fought against for most of his life threaten to destroy her.
At the heart of The Bakers Tale is Ruby Spriggs; Edwin Chatfield, the young man who would be her lover; Alexander Murd, the scheming coal baron who would destroy them; Abraham Hart, a dwarf who befriends Ruby in a faraway land; and Octavius Joy, a 19th-century philanthropist cut from unique cloth.
Meticulously researched and masterfully told, The Bakers Tale recreates the voice of beloved author Charles Dickens in gorgeous prose brimming with the atmosphere of historical London. It's a gripping tale of obsession, corruption, hope, and love instilled with the unequaled passion of Dickenss social conscience.
About the Author
Thomas Hauser is the author of forty-seven books on subjects ranging from professional boxing to Beethoven. His first novel
Missing was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, the Bancroft Prize, and the National Book Award, and was the basis for the Academy-Award-winning film starring Jack Lemmon and Sissy Spacek. He wrote
Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times the definitive biography of the most famous man on earth which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Hauser has written extensively about the sport and business of professional boxing and has published articles in in
The New Yorker, The New York Times, and other publications. He is currently a consultant to HBO and lives in Manhattan.