Great Expectations (1861) is a favourite among many Dickens readers. In addition to its endearing hero, Pip - a blacksmith's boy, desperate to escape his humble background - the story is populated by a vivid cast of characters, from the convict Magwitch to Miss Havisham who, jilted long ago, still wears her wedding gown and, for revenge, schools the beautiful young Estella in the art of malice towards men. When Pip receives a legacy and promptly leaves for London to become a gentleman, only then does he begin learning about the gulf between appearances and reality.