A workhouse orphan, Oliver experiences the terror and brutality of the criminal underworld. His companions, a thief, a whore, a pickpocket and a fence are destined for gruesome ends but Oliver emerges unscathed from the underworld.

This is a fast-moving and accessible series that offers a quick way into a range of classic novels. Each story is a shortened, dramatically illustrated version of the original book and loses none of the strength and flavour of the original.