Publisher's Synopsis
In Hard Times, Thomas Gradgrind raises his kids Tom and Louisa to learn facts and only facts. Consequently, Louisa marries a man she doesn't love, and Tom robs the bank he works at. The entire family ends up unhappy and unfeeling. Early in the novel, Gradgrind considers expelling a girl named Sissy Jupe for being a bad influence on his children. Realizing that Sissy's father has abandoned her, he lets her stay.
