This is Dickens' most personal novel, and therefore among his most important ones. The characters are unforgettable, and the author's trademark mixture of humor and drama is at its peak here (with the description of Copperfield's drunken escapades one evening still ranking among my personal top 5 comic scenes). In addition, Uriah Heep is certainly one of the most despicable and repulsive villains in the history of English literature.