{"product_id":"hard-times-legend-classics-by-charles-dickens-9781915054869","title":"Hard Times (Legend Classics)","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\"It is said that every life has its roses and thorns; there seemed, however, to have been a misadventure or mistake in Stephen's case, whereby somebody else had become possessed of his roses, and he had become possessed of somebody else's thorns in addition to his own.\"\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePublished originally in weekly instalments, \u003cem\u003eHard Times\u003c\/em\u003e focuses on Mr Gradgrind's flawed model of upbringing and its lifelong impact on the wellbeing and destinies of his children. The novel, in fact, follows two opposing ways an individual can be formed. On the one hand, there is Tom and Louisa, whose numerous misfortunes are predetermined by their father's insistence on knowing bare facts without reaching for the substance. They are ill-equipped for the real world, and as a result, Louisa suffers emotionally, having had a marriage of convenience, while Tom intentionally devises to incriminate another for his own misdeed. On the other hand, there is Mr Gradgrind's student Sissy, whose guardian he becomes upon her father's disappearance. Despite Mr Gradgrind's scorn, she approaches things with a genuine sensibility that helps her to lead a happier and more fulfilled life. The readers are prompted to ponder throughout the novel whether Mr Gradgrind will eventually acknowledge his failure as a parent.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHard Times\u003c\/em\u003e is an unusually short novel for Dickens and the only one not to feature London scenes. Instead, it is set in the North and, besides addressing the issues of education, it also exposes the harsh daily living conditions of regular working-class people and the negative side of industrialisation. The author captures the zeitgeist of a new era where the old and new ways have to coexist and where many are continuously being left behind, either by being deprived financially or spiritually. While maxims and cold facts are effective for scientific progress and the operations of complex machinery, they are not a prerequisite for human happiness. The volume's solid subject matter is intertwined with the gripping elements of suspense that will undoubtedly appeal to a diverse audience.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003eLegend Classics\u003c\/em\u003e series:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eAround the World in Eighty Days\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Importance of Being Earnest\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eAlice's Adventures in Wonderland\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Metamorphosis\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Railway Children\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Hound of the Baskervilles\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eFrankenstein\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eWuthering Heights\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThree Men in a Boat\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Time Machine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eLittle Women\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eAnne of Green Gables\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Jungle Book\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Yellow Wallpaper and Other Stories\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eDracula\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Study in Scarlet\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eLeaves of Grass\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Secret Garden\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe War of the Worlds\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Christmas Carol\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eStrange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eHeart of Darkness\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Scarlet Letter\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThis Side of Paradise\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eOliver Twist\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Picture of Dorian Gray\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eTreasure Island\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Turn of the Screw\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Adventures of Tom Sawyer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eEmma\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Trial\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Selection of Short Stories by Edgar Allan Poe\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eGrimm Fairy Tales\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Awakening\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eMrs Dalloway\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eGulliver's Travels\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Castle of Otranto\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eSilas Marner\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003eHard Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Hachette Aotearoa New Zealand","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46711781032172,"sku":"9781915054869","price":34.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/23217183482869.jpg?v=1754245924","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/products\/hard-times-legend-classics-by-charles-dickens-9781915054869","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}