When young Nicholas Nickleby's father dies in poverty, he must turn to his wealthy uncle for help to support his mother and sister. The uncle reluctantly assists Nicholas in obtaining a poorly paid job as an assistant to the unscrupulous headmaster Wackford Squeers, who runs a school for disadvantaged children. Nicholas quickly realizes that all is not well at the school and attempts to hold Squeers accountable. Nicholas Nickleby is a classic coming-of-age novel about finding one's place in the adult world. In typical Dickens fashion, it is filled with extraordinary and eccentric characters while simultaneously criticizing societal injustices. CHARLES DICKENS [1812–1870], born in Portsmouth, England, was the most popular English-language novelist of his time. He created a fictional world that reflected the social and technological changes during the Victorian era. Among his most famous works are David Copperfield, Oliver Twist, Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities, A Christmas Carol, and The Pickwick Papers.