

Although I enjoyed reading the story, I sometimes felt that it took an idealistic turn, especially toward the ending, and some actions the characters took really puzzled me (Mr. Carson simply going home and reading the Bible after finding out his only son's true killer and witnessing a minor example of forgiveness out on the street).
Where it shines is in the vivid and horrifying descriptions of poverty in 19th century industrial England. This novel focuses primarily on depicting both the outer and inner lives of selected working class people, and touches only briefly and rather unsatisfactorily on the views and motivations of the upper classes.
Although I enjoyed reading the story, I sometimes felt that it took an idealistic turn, especially toward the ending, and some actions the characters took really puzzled me (Mr. Carson simply going home and reading the Bible after finding out his only son's true killer and witnessing a minor example of forgiveness out on the street).
Where it shines is in the vivid and horrifying descriptions of poverty in 19th century industrial England. This novel focuses primarily on depicting both the outer and inner lives of selected working class people, and touches only briefly and rather unsatisfactorily on the views and motivations of the upper classes.