<DIV><DIV><B>Dickens's second novel is a scalding indictment of child labor and the English Poor Laws, centering on the travails of an innocent child</B></DIV></DIV><DIV> </DIV><DIV>Orphaned at birth and abandoned to the hardships of the workhouse, Oliver Twist lives a grueling life of poverty. Desperate to escape his heartless tormenters, he runs away to start a better life in London but, once there, he is befriended by a young pickpocket known as the Artful Dodger, who introduces him to Fagin and his gang of thieves. A chance encounter gives Oliver the opportunity to escape the criminal underworld, but Fagin won't let him get away so easily?and just when everything seems hopeless, events take a most unexpected turn.</DIV>