{"authors": [{"author": {"key": "/authors/OL24638A"}, "type": {"key": "/type/author_role"}}], "description": "A Tale of Two Cities is a historical novel published in 1859 by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. The novel tells the story of the French Doctor Manette, his 18-year-long imprisonment in the Bastille in Paris, and his release to live in London with his daughter Lucie whom he had never met. The story is set against the conditions that led up to the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror. In the Introduction to the Encyclopedia of Adventure Fiction, critic Don D'Ammassa argues that it is an adventure novel because the protagonists are in constant danger of being imprisoned or killed.\r\n\r\nAs Dickens's best-known work of historical fiction, A Tale of Two Cities is said to be one of the best-selling novels of all time. In 2003, the novel was ranked 63rd on the BBC's The Big Read poll. The novel has been adapted for film, television, radio, and the stage, and has continued to influence popular culture.", "key": "/works/OL8193465W", "subject_places": ["London", "Paris", "Bastille Prison", "Dover", "Faubourg Saint-Antoine", "La Force Prison", "France", "Paris (France)", "London (England)", "England"], "subject_times": ["1775\u201393", "Revolution, 1789-1799", "1789-1799 (R\u00e9volution)", "1789-1799", "18th century", "Revolution", "1793"], "subjects": ["British", "British and irish fiction (fictional works by one author)", "Children's fiction", "Criticism and interpretation", "English fiction", "English literature", "Executions and executioners", "Fathers and daughters", "Fiction", "classics", "Histoire", "Historia", "Historical fiction", "History", "Juvenile fiction", "Lookalikes", "Novela", "Novela inglesa", "Padre e hija", "P\u00e8res et filles", "Readers", "Roman fran\u00e7ais", "Sosies", "War stories", "Reign of Terror", "storming of the Bastille", "French Revolution", "Guillotine", "French", "Romans, nouvelles", "IIIT", "French fiction", "Comics & graphic novels", "British and irish drama (dramatic works by one author)", "Drama", "Plays", "Readers' theater", "Juvenile drama", "Children's plays, American", "France, history, revolution, 1789-1799, fiction", "London (england), history, fiction", "Paris (france), history, fiction", "Fathers and daughters, fiction", "London (england), fiction", "Paris (france), fiction", "Fiction, historical, general", "LANGUAGE & LITERARY STUDIES", "FICTION CLASSICS", "CONTEMPORARY FICTION", "Revolution", "Classic Literature", "Revenge", "Loyalty", "Political refugees", "Friendship", "Revolution (France : 1789-1799)", "revolution 1789-1799", "Comic books, strips", "Adaptations", "Literature", "Comics & graphic novels, literary", "Fiction, general", "Reference books", "Translations in Japanese", "Japanese literature", "Translations from English", "Translations into Japanese", "Juvenile Nonfiction", "Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Fiction", "Children: Grades 3-4", "History Revolution, 1789-1799--Fiction", "City and town life", "Long now manual for civilization"], "title": "A Tale of Two Cities", "type": {"key": "/type/work"}, "covers": [13301713, 13133160, 10424335, 13313513, 13017528, 2331236, -1, 13499486, 2914302, 2521843, 840081, 7608555, 8775366, 8328004, 10465167, 11120071, 11381197, 11488244, 13528807, 13480809, 14065818, 14065817, 8324950], "links": [{"title": "A Tale of Two Cities - Wikipedia", "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Tale_of_Two_Cities", "type": {"key": "/type/link"}}, {"title": "thegreatestbooks.org/items/550", "url": "https://thegreatestbooks.org/items/550", "type": {"key": "/type/link"}}, {"title": "A Tale of Two Cities: Study Guide | SparkNotes", "url": "https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/a-tale-of-two-cities/", "type": {"key": "/type/link"}}, {"title": "A Tale of Two Cities | Summary, Characters, & Facts | Britannica", "url": "https://www.britannica.com/topic/A-Tale-of-Two-Cities-novel", "type": {"key": "/type/link"}}, {"title": "A Tale of Two Cities", "url": "https://archive.org/details/a-tale-of-two-cities-by-charles-dickens", "type": {"key": "/type/link"}}, {"title": "Um conto de duas cidades, de Charles Dickens", "url": "https://love-books-review.com/pt-br/um-conto-de-duas-cidades/", "type": {"key": "/type/link"}}, {"title": "A Tale of Two Cities-Ebookzy", "url": "https://ebookzy.com/a-tale-of-two-cities/", "type": {"key": "/type/link"}}], "subject_people": ["Jerry Cruncher", "Jarvis Lorry", "Alexandre Manette", "Lucie Manette", "Miss Pross", "Charles Darnay", "Sydney Carton", "John Barsad", "Roger Cly", "Marquis St. Evr\u00e9monde", "Madame Defarge", "Monsieur Defarge", "Mrs Cruncher", "Th\u00e9ophile Gabelle", "Ernest Defarge", "Therese Defarge", "Mrs. Cruncher", "Mr. Stryver", "Monseigneur", "Gaspard", "The Mender of Roads", "The Vengeance", "The Seamstress", "Lucy Manette"], "excerpts": [{"excerpt": "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way\u2014in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.", "author": {"key": "/people/lexid523"}}], "first_publish_date": "November 7, 1996", "lc_classifications": ["PS3558.U832 T35 1996"], "dewey_number": ["812/.54"], "first_sentence": {"type": "/type/text", "value": "DEPENDING ON WHO you listened to, it was either the best of times, or it was the worst of times."}, "identifiers": {"bookbrainz": ["fe11b37b-9c40-43f2-aebc-0b3b8fc2f475"], "wikidata": ["Q308918"], "musicbrainz": ["782a0186-f5eb-482a-856e-144d8a42e6fa"]}, "latest_revision": 85, "revision": 85, "created": {"type": "/type/datetime", "value": "2009-12-10T22:30:37.603993"}, "last_modified": {"type": "/type/datetime", "value": "2026-01-13T18:36:01.173057"}}