Young Charles Dickens's happy childhood came to a sudden end when his father was jailed for debt and, aged 12, he was sent to work in a factory to make shoe polish. By his mid twenties, he was on the verge of becoming the most popular novelist the world has ever known. He created hundreds of unforgettable characters and travelled all over the country and in America giving readings of his work to thunderous applause. But Charles never forgot his days working alongside poor and abandoned orphans. He helped children in every practical way he could: by raising money for children's charities and writing stories that changed the way people think about children for ever. Part of the Great Victorians series of biographies for children aged 9 years and up.