Bleak House

This annotated edition includes: Author Biography and Images. Bleak House is a novel by Charles Dickens, first published as a 20-episode serial between March 1852 and September 1853. The novel has many characters and several sub-plots, and is told partly by the novel's heroine, Esther Summerson, and partly by an omniscient narrator. At the centre of Bleak House is a long-running legal case in the Court of Chancery, Jarndyce and Jarndyce, which comes about because a testator has written several conflicting wills. In a preface to the 1853 first edition, Dickens claimed there were many actual precedents for his fictional case. One such was probably the Thellusson v Woodford case in which a will read in 1797 was contested and not determined until 1859. Though many in the legal profession criticised Dickens's satire as exaggerated, this novel helped support a judicial reform movement which culminated in the enactment of legal reform in the 1870s. THIS BOOK IS IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN OF AFFECTION Many moons ago, an author was inspired to create this book. Today, we cannot repay them, but we can pay it forward. With great affection for the written word, we can use these public domain works to fund programs for young authors. As you read these books, you support the next generation of authors. It's one way words help inspire. Read more at AuthoriseB THE WORDS OF YESTERDAY, HELP THE READERS OF TODAY, INSPIRE THE AUTHORS OF TOMORROW.