Oliver Twist is born in a workhouse where he is partly baptized with the name. His mother, whose identity no one knows, dies shortly after giving birth to him. Oliver is sent to a branch work- house, a wretched home, where no kind word is ever heard. On his ninth birthday, he is transferred back to the house.

Back to the workhouse, Oliver and his companions suffer starva­tions for three months. A council is held among the boys and the task of who should walk up to the master after supper and ask for more falls to Oliver. The next morning, an announcement is posted—a reward of five pounds will be given to anybody who will take Oliver Twist.

Oliver is eventually given to Mr. Sowerberry, a parochial under­taker. When another apprentice, Noah Claypole, insults the memory of his dead mother, Oliver attacks him. Mr. Sowerberry punishes Oliver severely. He runs away and travels to London.

Starved and exhausted, Oliver meets the Artful Dodger, who offers him shelter in the house of Fagin. It turns out that Fagin trains children to pick pockets for him. In one of the Dodger’s missions, Oliver is wrongfully accused of stealing Mr. Brownlow’s handker­chief. However, the old gentleman takes pity on Oliver and takes him to his home. Oliver has never felt so loved before.

But Fagin wants him back...

Oliver’s attempts to stay good in a society that seems to refuse help prove that the wicked will meet his just ending and the kind rewarded.

Vividly illustrated and set in easy-to-read large font, this collector’s edition can be enjoyed by young readers and by generations to come.