Newtown, New South Wales by the crime writer Peter Corris. One of the first pieces of fiction to be published in colonial Sydney was "The Legend of Newtown" by future member of parliament D.H. Deneihy, published in the Sydney "Sentinel" on 5 November 1845 when the author was 17. It described Newtown as "a favourite place ... to snatch a mouthful of fresh air, a view of the ruralities of the place". The famous Newtown recluse and eccentric Eliza Emily Donnithorne (1826-1886) is said by some sources to have inspired the character of Miss Havisham in Charles Dickens' novel "Great Expectations". Donnithorne lived in
Charles Dickens I wonder if there ever was a captain yet that lost a ship with his log-book up to date? He generally has about a month to fill up on a clean break, like Charles Dickens and his serial novels." Dickens's novels were, among other things, works of social commentary. He was a fierce critic of the poverty and social stratification of Victorian society. In a New York address, he expressed his belief that "Virtue shows quite as well in rags and patches as she does in purple and fine linen". Dickens's second novel, "Oliver Twist" (1839), shocked readers with its