Martin Chuzzlewit, or "the American one", as fans of Dickens often refer to it, is "The Inimitable`"s sixth novel, written and published in twenty monthly parts between January 1843 to July 1844, when its author was between 30 and 32. It is a typical Dickensian romp of a ride, with thrills, passion, savage mockery, suspense - and flashes of absurd humour amidst the despair. The novel lunges between hyperbole and whimsy, switching at a moment`s notice, and it contains some of Dickens`s most memorable characters. There is the seedy but charming schemer Montague Tigg (Tigg Montague), and his associate Chevy Slyme, the eccentrically fey and colourfully attired barber and bird-fancier Poll Sweedlepipe, the staunch ally Mark Tapley, the undertaker Mr Mould, the buxom good-hearted pub landlady Mrs Lupin, the poor addled old clerk or is he really so confused?