Helpful Score: 1
Not Eliot's best work, but worth reading -- this is the short, simple, and sweet story of a miser who learns to treasure humans more than gold. A bit disappointing that he doesn't meet the girl until past the halfway point; I had looked forward to seeing most of the book devoted to him raising the little girl and becoming ever more fond of her, but this book concentrated most on his past, his greed, and the loss of his gold. For the delicious prose and characterization alone, however, this book is entirely worth reading.
I read this book in English class in 10th grade. It was a pretty good story, but I don't recall liking the writing style very much. Luckily, it's a short book.