Author: Charles Dickens

Retold by Gill Tavner

Illustrated by Karen Donnelly

Publisher: Real Reads Ltd 2007

Pages: 64

Description: A disappearing father, an unhappy marriage, a handsome suitor and a bank robbery all bring challenges to Louisa's life. Will she be able to control her powerful emotions, or will they lead her to ruin?

Set amongst the noisy, dangerous factories of a northern industrial town, where the workers struggle to survive, Hard Times explores the power that people can have over others, and the suffering that is caused when human emotions are ignored.