Happy Birthday, Mr. Dickens!

I'm not sure what it is about Charles Dickens that I like so much when I've only read a few of his novels. He also is the king of the run-on sentence, which usually drives me up the wall!

But even so, his stories have touched millions whether it's been through actually reading the literal book, seeing a film adaptation, experiencing a theatrical production, etc. I myself even went to a reading of A CHRISTMAS CAROL this past December at a church on the upper east side.

So, today, on what would be his 200th birthday, it doesn't surprise me that Google decided to honor Dickens in their site header. The header then inspired Mashable Tech to write a nice little mini-bio/feature:

Today’s Google Doodle celebrates the 200th birthday of writer Charles Dickens.

Born on Feb. 7 1812 in Landport, England, Charles John Huffam Dickens grew in tough, working-class conditions. At age 12, after his father was thrown into a debtors’ prison, he was forced to work at a blacking factory.

This experience later influenced many of his famous novels, including Oliver Twist, David Copperfield and Great Expectations.

Starting his career as a journalist, Dickens eventually started writing literary prose, which was published in monthly installments before being released as books.

His realistic portray of England’s lower-class life made him one of the greatest Victorian novelists and one of the most recognizable names in literature.

Dickens was also a philanthropist; together with Angela Burdett Coutts he founded the Urania Cottage, a home for “fallen” women, helping them learn to read and write.

Dickens died from the consequences of a stroke in his home on June 8, 1870. His last words were, reportedly, “Be natural my children. For the writer that is natural has fulfilled all the rules of art.”

See the original post HERE