狄更斯（1812～1870）英国小说家，一生共创作了14部长篇小说，许多中、短篇小说和杂文、游记、戏剧、小品。

《远大前程》（又名《孤星血泪》）是狄更斯最成熟的作品之一，是他比较晚期的作品。狄更斯经历了丰富的人间生活后，对人，对周围环境，对自己的生活经历都有了深刻的认识，而所有他成熟的思想认识都汇总在《远大前程》一书中。

Take nothing on its looks; take everything on evidence. There's no better rule.

Living with his sister and her husband, Pip is an orphan without any expectations. It is only when he begins to visit a rich old woman, Miss Havisham and her adopted niece that he begins to hope for something better. When it is revealed that Pip has inherited a large sum of money from a mysterious benefactor on the condition that he moves to London to become a gentleman, Pip's adventure really begins. Epic, illuminating and memorable, Dickens mysterious tale of Pip's quest to find the truth about himself is one of his most enduring and popular novels to date.