This week’s quote comes from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I’m determined to make good on my failed attempt to read it at the end of last year, so I started over again on it at the end of last week. I’m finding it more readable the second time through. Dickens–well, what can I say about him? He’s masterful at drawing vivid descriptions, and quite often, they are humorous. Case in point is this description of Jerry Cruncher, the jack-of-all-trades who plies those trades outside of Tellson Bank:
He had eyes that assorted very well with that decoration [his hat which hides them], being of a surface black, with no depth in the colour or form, and much too near together–as if they were afraid of being found out in something, singly, if they kept too far apart.
And one more bit:
Except on the crown, which was raggedly bald, he had stiff, black hair, standing jaggedly all over it, and growing downhill almost to his broad, blunt nose. It was so like smith’s work, so much more like the top of a strongly spiked wall than a head of hair, that the best of players at leap-frog might have declined him, as the most dangerous man in the world to go over. (22)
I love it!
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Hope Is the Word 
I love it too.
Glad you’re enjoying ‘Tale.’ It took me awhile to get into it, but I loved it once it started rolling.
Lately I seem to be capable of reading only short books. You go girl! 🙂
It took me a few tries to finally complete A Tale of Two Cities, but once I did, I loved it and immediately read it again. I had totally forgotten those quotes though. Too funny!
Oh, I love them, too, Amy … especially the second one. 🙂
I’ve enjoyed beginning a A Tale of Two Cities several times. It’s not a hard book or an uninteresting book, but there’s something about it that just hasn’t grabbed me yet. In reading, timing is everything, so I’ll wait and try again later.
What a feast of words! Thanks for sharing.
The second one is great. I can just picture it.
Great quotes. I’ve never read Tale, either. Maybe THAT should be on my classics list for 5 Minutes for Books this year.
I’ve not read it either, but if I can make it through all of Jane Austen’s novels in a year, I think I could manage AToTC. I’m giggling now, just thinking about your second quote!! =)
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