Charles John Huffam Dickens (7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870)
Born in Portsmouth, England, Dickens left school at the age of 12
to work in a factory when his father was incarcerated in a debtors’
prison. After three years he was returned to school, before he began
his literary career as a journalist. Dickens edited a weekly journal for
20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories
and non-fiction articles, lectured and performed readings extensively, and campaigned vigorously for children’s rights, education and other social reforms.
In 1836 Dickens married Catherine Hogarth, with whom he would
have nine children. He died from a stroke in 1870 at the age of 58,
with his last novel, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, still unfinished.
