Bleak House is a brilliant book and classic Dickens. It has a large number of characters representing types as well as providing complex portraits on their own, a complicated narrative and plots upon subplots, and biting commentary on life in Victorian England, particularly with regard to the treatment of the poor, the fate of children, and of course the flaws in the legal system. The book is atmospheric- Dickens uses weather to evoke moods and represent his theses- for example, Chancery Court and Lincoln’s Field are typically shrouded in thick fog.  It also has a mystery in the middle. The infamous lawsuit at the center of the book, Jarndyce and Jarndyce, is convoluted and confusing and even debilitating and death causing to it’s supposed beneficiaries- when the case ends only the lawyers have realized any benefit as the estate has been depleted during the course of the lengthy lawsuit. Dickens has no love lost in any of his books for lawyers but the biting commentary in this one makes it  required reading for all lawyers. I tried on two occasions to read this book and failed but finally did it with The Bookshelf’s Conquer a Classic and Sue’s Big Book summer. Once I got to page 500- about half way through- the plot came together and I couldn’t stop reading although I started