Nicholas Nickleby / Dickens, Charles

Left penniless by the death of his improvident father, young Nicholas Nickleby assumes responsibility for his mother and sister and seeks help from his Scrooge-like Uncle Ralph. Instantly disliking Nicholas, Ralph sends him to teach in a school run by the stupidly sadistic Wackford Squeers. Nicholas decides to escape, taking with him the orphan Smike, one of Squeers?s most abused young charges, and the two embark on a series of adventurous encounters with an array of humanity?s worst and bestgreedy fools, corrupt lechers, cheery innocents, and selfless benefactors.

In a series of adventures Nicholas, a young hero, journeys from the dungeon like Yorkshire boys' boarding school to a high-spirited acting troupe in nineteenth-century England.

"This edition of Nicholas Nickleby, specially created for younger readers, brings to life the terrible conditions suffered by children in the Victorian education system. It tells the story of an idealistic young man who stands up to injustice and of his encounters with some of Dickens' finest creations-among them the eccentric Mr. Crummles and the cruel Mr. Squeers.