An Unofficial 'The Rest Is History' Reading List

Charles Dickens

18 books referenced

Books by Charles Dickens

Oliver Twist

Referenced in 4 episodes

624. Jack The Ripper: History’s Darkest Mystery (Part 1)

December 08, 2025

Context:

Referenced when discussing the workhouse system, noting that 'anyone who's read Oliver Twist will know' about Victorian welfare in the form of workhouses

342: The Trials of Oscar Wilde: Downfall and Prison (Part 2)

June 19, 2023

Context:

Referenced indirectly through the character Bill Sykes when discussing how Wilde's punishment would be worse for him than 'for a Bill Sykes' - the murderer from the Dickens novel.

212. Haunted London (Part 4)

July 21, 2022

Context:

Extensively discussed as the hosts visit Saffron Hill, the location of Fagin's lair in the novel. A passage is read aloud describing Oliver's first impressions of the area.

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

Mentioned as one of Dickens' earlier successful books before A Christmas Carol

Great Expectations

Referenced in 2 episodes

600. Chatham High Street

September 14, 2025

Context:

Discussed as the novel for which Dickens used Restoration House in Rochester as inspiration for Miss Havisham's 'Satis House.' Dominic mentions winning a school reading competition four years in a row with the opening of this novel.

212. Haunted London (Part 4)

July 21, 2022

Context:

Referenced when discussing the character Pip visiting Mr. Jaggers' offices near Smithfield - 'And one of them is Pip in Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, who, when he comes to London, goes to the offices of Mr. Jaggers.'

The Mystery of Edwin Drood

Referenced in 2 episodes

600. Chatham High Street

September 14, 2025

Context:

Described as Dickens's 'last novel, which he never completed.' The hosts discuss the plot involving 'the opium addict and cathedral organist, John Jasper' and note that Rochester in the novel is called 'Cloisterham.'

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

Mentioned as Dickens' last unfinished novel, noting it features a murder on Christmas

Martin Chuzzlewit

Referenced in 3 episodes

590. The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln: Death at the Theatre (Part 1)

August 10, 2025

Context:

Referenced when describing the chaotic scene at Lincoln's inauguration, comparing it to something Dickens would have enjoyed writing about, specifically 'like a scene from Martin Chuzzlewit.'

263: USA vs England: The 200-Year Rivalry

November 25, 2022

Context:

Mentioned as a novel Dickens was writing: 'he's writing a novel called Martin Chuzzlewit' in which he sends his hero to America, with chapters that caused offense to Americans.

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

Mentioned as Dickens' most recent book before A Christmas Carol, described as 'a bit of a failure' which motivated him to write something successful

The Old Curiosity Shop

Referenced in 3 episodes

536. Emperors of Rome: Caligula, Incest and Insanity (Part 3)

February 03, 2025

Context:

Referenced when Tom compares Caligula's behavior of contorting his face in the mirror to make it more fearsome to 'the malevolent dwarf Quilp in Charles Dickens' old curiosity shop.'

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

Referenced when discussing the character Little Nell and comparing Tiny Tim to her as a sentimental figure

108. The Industrial Revolution

October 14, 2021

Context:

A passage from this 1841 novel is read aloud describing the industrial landscape of the Black Country, with tall chimneys, smoke, and strange engines. Used to illustrate Victorian literary depictions of industrialization.

A Tale of Two Cities

Referenced in 10 episodes

505. The French Revolution: The Shadow of the Guillotine (Part 3)

October 20, 2024

Context:

The episode opens with a quotation from this novel describing the guillotine. The hosts use it to introduce the topic of the guillotine as a symbol of the French Revolution in the English-speaking world.

481. The French Revolution: The Women's March on Versailles (Part 7)

August 07, 2024

Context:

Referenced alongside Burke and Carlyle as British writers who told the French Revolution story through the perspective of the aristocracy: 'They love to tell the story through the eyes, you know, with a sense of horror, fascinated horror at the revolution.'

478. The French Revolution: Showdown in Versailles (Part 4)

August 01, 2024

Context:

Referenced when discussing stereotypes and caricatures of the French Revolution and the French elite, suggesting that if one had read this book, they might have incorrect assumptions about the aristocracy's response to the crisis.

477. The French Revolution: The Violence Begins (Part 3)

July 31, 2024

Context:

Described as 'one of the most influential books on our perception of history that has ever been written' regarding the French Revolution

208. George Orwell

July 14, 2022

Context:

Referenced alongside Pride and Prejudice as having a famous opening and noted as having 'quite a political resonance'

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

One of the hosts mentions reading it during lockdown, describing being moved to tears by the ending

130. Superheroes

December 13, 2021

Context:

Briefly referenced as having quotations appear in The Dark Knight Rises Batman film, mentioned in context of discussing the politics of superhero narratives

48. The French Revolution

May 03, 2021

Context:

Mentioned as representing the British/Dickensian view of the French Revolution, and referenced as the book Margaret Thatcher gave to Mitterrand at the bicentenary

14. Historical Fiction

January 11, 2021

Context:

Argued to be the single most influential novel on how English-speaking world understands the French Revolution

12. Conspiracy Theories

January 04, 2021

Context:

Tom mentions reading it 'for the first time since school' before Christmas, discussing how Dickens explains the French Revolution as a kind of conspiracy

The Pickwick Papers

Referenced in 3 episodes

463. Mad Elections (Part 1)

June 23, 2024

Context:

The hosts read an extended passage from this 1836 novel depicting an election scene in the fictional East Anglian town of Eton Swill (based on Bury St. Edmunds). They use it to introduce their discussion of the history of election campaigns, noting that Dickens had been a parliamentary reporter and held contempt for politicians throughout his life.

298: The Nazis: Total Power (Part 4)

January 26, 2023

Context:

Tom compares the staccato style of Goebbels' diary entry to the character Alfred Jingle from this Dickens novel

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

Mentioned as one of Dickens' earlier successful books before A Christmas Carol

Little Dorrit

Referenced in 1 episode

414. The Peasants’ Revolt: London’s Burning (Part 2)

February 01, 2024

Context:

Mentioned when discussing the Marshalsea prison in Southwark, noting that 'Dickens' father ends up being in prison there' - the novel Little Dorrit features this prison prominently.

Bleak House

Referenced in 5 episodes

400. Victorian Britain's Maddest Mystery

December 18, 2023

Context:

Mentioned in comparison to the lengthy court case, with reference to 'Jandice and Jandice' (Jarndyce and Jarndyce). The hosts ask if Dickens had already written Bleak House at this point, noting it was published about 20 years before the Tichborne trial.

212. Haunted London (Part 4)

July 21, 2022

Context:

Referenced in connection with the character Mr. Turvey Drop and the dancing school that once operated in the Lady Chapel space - 'And then, Mr. Turvey Drop, isn't it? Yeah, that's right. From Bleak House.'

185. Agatha Christie

May 16, 2022

Context:

Mentioned for Inspector Bucket as an example of Dickens being a progenitor of detective fiction

109. Dinosaurs

October 18, 2021

Context:

Referenced when discussing how dinosaurs were cutting-edge in Victorian times. Tom notes that 'in Bleak House, in the opening paragraph, Dickens fixes on... the mists that are kind of filling London. And he says that it wouldn't be a surprise to see a megalosaurus walking up Hoban Hill' - described as a 'cutting edge reference' for the time.

85. Sherlock Holmes

August 12, 2021

Context:

Mentioned for introducing Inspector Bucket as a prototype for later detective characters

American Notes

Referenced in 1 episode

263: USA vs England: The 200-Year Rivalry

November 25, 2022

Context:

Explicitly mentioned as one of the books Dickens wrote after his American trip that 'cause immense upset in America,' described as 'basically a description of his journey' with 'a vituperative attack on the institution of slavery.'

Pictures from Italy

Referenced in 1 episode

222. Victorian Holidays

August 18, 2022

Context:

Referenced at the beginning of the episode as Dickens' 'brilliant account of a travel across the continent' describing his impressions of Rome and Italy.

Dombey and Son

Referenced in 1 episode

140. The Birth of the Railways

January 20, 2022

Context:

Tom mentions 'one of the other famous passages from Victorian literature describing this process is at the beginning of Dombey and Son, where Dickens describes the railway going through Camden and the kind of process of destruction.'

Barnaby Rudge

Referenced in 1 episode

12 Days: Alfred the Great and Pepys' 'Fanatiques'

January 06, 2022

Context:

Briefly mentioned in connection with discussion of the Gordon Riots as a comparison point for religious violence in London

A Christmas Carol

Referenced in 3 episodes

133. Christmas churches

December 23, 2021

Context:

Extensively discussed as one of the most beloved Victorian ghost stories, with details about its publication history, adaptation count, and the church locations featured in the story

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

The main subject of the entire podcast episode - they are discussing the book, its origins, characters, and locations in London associated with it

10. Christmas

December 21, 2020

Context:

Extensively discussed as crucial to the modern understanding of Christmas, published in 1843. The hosts discuss how it created the template for Christmas celebrations, the Cratchit family scenes, Scrooge's transformation, and note the Muppet version as the best adaptation

Nicholas Nickleby

Referenced in 1 episode

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

Mentioned as one of Dickens' earlier successful books before A Christmas Carol

Sketches by Boz

Referenced in 1 episode

132. A Christmas Carol

December 20, 2021

Context:

Mentioned as Dickens' very first work, noting it included a sketch about Christmas

A Child's History of England

Referenced in 1 episode

124. World Cup of Kings and Queens part 2

November 23, 2021

Context:

Referenced when discussing Henry VIII - Dickens is quoted calling Henry VIII 'a most intolerable ruffian, a disgrace to human nature, and a blot of blood and grease upon the history of England.'

David Copperfield

Referenced in 1 episode

24. Sex in the City

February 18, 2021

Context:

Referenced in discussion of Little Emily as an example of the 'fallen woman' who 'still remains pure' - used to discuss Victorian attitudes toward sexuality and fallen women