100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿

Fast overnight NZ delivery 🚀 Don't forget Father's Day is this Sunday 📅

A Tale of Two Cities

Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
A Tale of Two Cities is Charles Dickens' gripping historical novel set between 1757 and 1793 that examines the French Revolution through intimate personal stories. The narrative explores the profound human suffering and sacrifice amidst the Terror in Paris, focusing on fictional characters whose lives intersect with the tumultuous public history of the era. This edition features extensive notes providing crucial background on the Revolution and Dickens' sources, enriching the reader's understanding.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2900

International Supplier

This title is in-stock with overseas suppliers. While it is not available locally, we fly books in weekly from the US and UK to our Auckland warehouse for immediate dispatch.

AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 2-3 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Ideal for students and general readers interested in classic literature and historical fiction, especially those seeking a deeper understanding of the French Revolution and nineteenth-century perspectives.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

As the bicentenary of the French Revolution draws near, Dickens' historical novel serves as a timely reminder of nineteenth-century reactions to that great upheaval. Set between 1757 and 1793, A Tale of Two Cities views the causes and effects of the Revolution from an essentially private point of view, showing how private experience relates to public history. Dickens' characters are fictional, and their political activity is minimal, yet all are drawn towards the Paris of the Terror, and all become caught up in its web of human suffering and human sacrifice.

This edition includes extensive explanatory notes giving crucial background information about the Revolution and Dickens' sources.

'The best story I have written' — Charles Dickens

ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years, Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Praised for its richly detailed explanatory notes and authoritative introduction, this edition appeals to both general readers and Dickens specialists alike. Critics commend the large, clear print and comprehensive annotations, making it an excellent choice for students. The enduring power of the story and its hero is celebrated, with one reviewer noting, 'It is the best story of the best hero. It does not pale.'

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780199536238

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 08 May 2008

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Oxford University Press

Contributors:

  • Edited by Andrew Sanders

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 21.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 308g

Pages: 448

About the Author

Andrew Sanders is a lecturer in English at Birkbeck College, London. He is Honorary Editor of The Dickensian, and editor of Barry Lyndon by William Makepeace Thackerary, and Sylvia's Lovers by Mrs Gaskell, both in The World's Classics series.

Also by Charles Dickens

View all
  • A Tale of Two Cities
    HarperCollins is proud to present its range of best-loved, essential classics. A Tale of Two Cities begins with the famous line, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." Set in Paris and London against the backdrop of the French Revolution, A Tale of Two Cities tells the story of Lucie Manette and her father Alexandre,...
    Paperback
    $999
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • To Be Read at Dusk
    46 new books in the bestselling Little Black Classics series, to celebrate the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946. The monstrous thought came into my mind as I perused the fixed eyes and the saturnine face, that this was a spirit, not a man.
    Paperback
    $999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Great Expectations
    HarperCollins is proud to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics. My father’s family name being Pirrip, and my Christian name Philip, my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip. So, I called myself Pip, and came to be called Pip. An orphan destined for a life of misery and poverty, Pip...
    Paperback
    $900
    Elsewhere:
    $999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Bleak House
    As the interminable case of Jarndyce and Jarndyce grinds its way through the Court of Chancery, it draws together a disparate group of people: Ada and Richard Clare, whose inheritance is gradually being devoured by legal costs; Esther Summerson, a ward of court, whose parentage is a source of deepening mystery; the menacing lawyer Tulkinghorn; the determined sleuth Inspector Bucket;...
    Paperback
    $2000
    Elsewhere:
    $2200
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Oliver Twist
    HarperCollins is proud to present its new range of best-loved, essential classics. Oliver Twist 'Please, sir, I want some more.' An orphan boy of seemingly no consequence goes on an adventure that will change his life forever. Fleeing a cruel workhouse, Oliver finds himself taken under the wing of the Artful Dodger and caught up with a group of pickpockets...
    Paperback
    $1099
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Oliver Twist
    The story of the orphan Oliver, who runs away from the workhouse only to be taken in by a den of thieves, shocked readers when it was first published. Dickens's tale of childhood innocence beset by evil depicts the dark criminal underworld of a London peopled by vivid and memorable characters - the arch-villain Fagin, the artful Dodger, the menacing...
    Paperback
    $2199
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • David Copperfield
    This is the novel Dickens regarded as his favourite child and is considered his most autobiographical. As David recounts his experience from childhood to the discovery of his vocation as a successful novelist, Dickens draws openly and revealingly on his own life. Among the gloriously vivid cast of characters are Rosa Dartle, Dora, Steerforth, and the 'umble Uriah Heep, along...
    Paperback
    $1900
    Elsewhere:
    $2100
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Great Expectations
    Beautifully designed, clothbound edition Part of Penguin's beautiful hardback Clothbound Classics series, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith, these delectable and collectible editions are bound in high-quality colourful, tactile cloth with foil stamped into the design. Great Expectations Pip doesn't expect much from life... His sister makes it clear that her orphaned little brother is nothing but a burden on...
    Hardback
    $3600
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    Backorder
    Ships mid September
  • On Sale
    16% off
    Great Expectations
    A terrifying encounter with an escaped convict in a graveyard on the wild Kent marshes; a summons to meet the bitter, decaying Miss Havisham and her beautiful, cold-hearted ward Estella; the sudden generosity of a mysterious benefactor—these form a series of events that change the orphaned Pip's life forever, and he eagerly abandons his humble origins to begin a new...
    Paperback
    $1600
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    11% off
    A Tale of Two Cities
    After eighteen years as a political prisoner in the Bastille, the aging Dr Manette is finally released and reunited with his daughter in England. There, two very different men, Charles Darnay, an exiled French aristocrat, and Sydney Carton, a disreputable but brilliant English lawyer, become enmeshed through their love for Lucie Manette. From the tranquil lanes of London, they are...
    Paperback
    $1600
    Elsewhere:
    $2200
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • A Christmas Carol
    Charles Dickens captures the spirit of Christmas in this classic holiday novella A Christmas Carol, Dickens’s timeless tale of greed, regret, and reform—featuring a beautiful new look! In one of the most popular holiday stories of all time, meet Ebenezer Scrooge, a miserly old man who hates Christmas and all the people asking for money that the holiday brings. One...
    Paperback
    $1799
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • A Christmas Carol - Kid Classics
    Share the spirit of Christmas with Dickens A Christmas Carol as an illustrated chapter storybook made for young readers! This timeless tale will have beginner readers drawn into the memorable story of Ebenezer Scrooge. Humbug! On a cobblestone street in London, on a cold Christmas Eve, the wealthy, greedy Ebenezer Scrooge is staying late at work at his “counting-house,” keeping his clerk,...
    Hardback
    $2899
    Elsewhere:
    $3500
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks

More from General Fiction

View all
  • The Wedding People
    'BEST READ OF THE YEAR SO FAR' THE TIMES 'BOOKS AS FUN AS THIS ONE ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN' GUARDIAN Phoebe Stone arrives at a grand beachside hotel in Rhode Island wearing her best dress and least comfortable shoes. Immediately she is mistaken for one of the wedding people — but she's actually the only guest at the Cornwall...
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (3)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Fourth Wing
    THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES AND NUMBER ONE GLOBAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON! DON'T MISS OUT ON THE SERIES THAT EVERYONE CAN'T STOP TALKING ABOUT: 'This book contains an addictive, drug-like essence that will make you relinquish all responsibility until the very last word. Do not say I didn't warn you' Glamour 'I didn't sleep, I didn't eat, and when I finished, I...
    Paperback
    $2200
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Iron Flame
    The instant number one Sunday Times bestseller and thrilling sequel to the global phenomenon, Fourth Wing! DON'T BE THE LAST TO DISCOVER THE SERIES THAT EVERYONE CAN'T STOP TALKING ABOUT: 'Yarros is the true inheritor of Harry Potter and inspires Hunger Games levels of devotion' Guardian 'Fear not, levels of fighting, rebelliousness and all-round sexiness are still sky-high' Daily Mail...
    Paperback
    $2200
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • A Court of Thorns and Roses
    The first instalment of the GLOBAL PHENOMENON and TikTok sensation, from multi-million selling and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas. Maas has established herself as a fantasy fiction titan – Time Harry Potter magic, Taylor Swift sass, Fifty Shades-level athleticism – The Sunday Times With bits of Buffy, Game of Thrones and Outlander, this is a glorious series...
    Paperback
    $2100
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Carl's Doomsday Scenario
    Buy to Win
    New Release
    Carl's Doomsday Scenario
    Join Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat Princess Donut as they fight fantastical creatures and deadly mobs in the second book in the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl series—now with bonus material exclusive to the print edition. Now on the third floor, Carl and Donut have to fight harder than ever. They've already proven that a Coast Guard vet and once-and-forever feline...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Buy to Win
    Dungeon Crawler Carl
    The apocalypse will be televised! Welcome to the first book in the wildly popular and addictive Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman-now with bonus material exclusive to the print edition! You know what's worse than breaking up with your girlfriend? Being stuck with her prize-winning show cat. And you know what's worse than that? An alien invasion, the destruction...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • A Court of Silver Flames
    The latest instalment of the GLOBAL PHENOMENON, romantic fantasy epic and TikTok sensation, ACOTAR. From multi-million and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas. Maas has established herself as a fantasy fiction titan - Time Think Game of Thrones meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a drizzle of E.L. James – Telegraph Spiced with slick plotting and atmospheric world-building...
    Paperback
    $2100
    Elsewhere:
    $2499
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Throne of Glass Box Set (Paperback)
    Enter the realm. Unleash the darkness. Live the legend. Discover the worldwide phenomenon of the #1 New York Times-bestselling Throne of Glass series in this gorgeous 8-book box set! In a land without magic, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She has no love for the vicious king who rules from his throne of glass, but she has not...
    Set
    $12400
    Elsewhere:
    $15500
    (6)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    20% off
    New Release
    The Ballad of Falling Dragons [Special Deluxe edition]
    The No.1 Sunday Times bestselling sensation When the Moon Hatched continues with the second book in The Moonfall Series, The Ballad of Falling Dragons… Raeve’s thirst for vengeance continues to burn, as does her love for Kaan Vaegor – a staunch beacon from a past she’s yet to face. With Rekk’s blood still fresh on her hands, she learns the...
    Hardback
    $4800
    Usually:
    $5999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • A Court of Frost and Starlight - Night Court Edition
    Limited Edition
    A Court of Frost and Starlight - Night Court Edition
    The magic and beauty of the Night Court is captured in these LIMITED EDITIONS of the Court of Thorns and Roses series! This Night Court Edition features the Night Court symbol on a striking black and silver foiled cover and includes black sprayed edges. An unmissable companion tale to the GLOBAL PHENOMENON, romantic fantasy epic and TikTok sensation, ACOTAR. From...
    Paperback
    $2300
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Fourth Wing New ANZ Limited Edition
    THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES AND NUMBER ONE GLOBAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON! DON'T MISS OUT ON THE SERIES THAT EVERYONE CAN'T STOP TALKING ABOUT: 'This book contains an addictive, drug-like essence that will make you relinquish all responsibility until the very last word. Do not say I didn't warn you' Glamour 'I didn't sleep, I didn't eat, and when I finished, I...
    Hardback
    $4200
    Elsewhere:
    $5499
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • A Court of Frost and Starlight
    In A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas, readers are invited to revisit the enchanting world of Prythian in a heartwarming and introspective narrative. Set against the backdrop of the Winter Solstice, Feyre Archeron and her mate Rhysand return to centre stage as they strive to restore the Night Court after the devastating conflicts of A Court...
    Paperback
    $2100
    Elsewhere:
    $2299
    In Stock
    Ships today

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.

General Fiction lists from the team

Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!