The Letters of Charles Dickens. 1833 to 1870. Edited by his sister-in-law and his eldest daughter

Though he eventually became one of the most beloved novelists in the history of English literature, Charles Dickens began life in the most ignominious of circumstances. After his father was sent to debtor's prison, young Dickens was sent to one of the infamous London workhouses; his experiences there set the stage for his uncompromising depiction of the social evils prevalent in the England of his day. Dickens, who initially wrote under the pseudonym "Boz," was the product of a periodical-based literary culture; his novels (which include David Copperfield and Oliver Twist) were conceived and written for serialization in magazines. His final novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, remained unfinished at his death.