Classic Book Reader
Cover of The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders

The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders

by Daniel Defoe (?–1731)

  • Free to read
  • 9 hours to read
  • Reading level: 10th to 12th grade

"The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders" by Daniel Defoe is a novel published in 1722. Born in prison to a convict mother, Moll navigates survival through a series of marriages, deceptions, and reinventions. As circumstances strip away her security time and again, she transforms from hopeful young woman to skilled con artist to accomplished thief. Through cunning and charm, Moll pursues the one thing that eludes her: lasting prosperity and peace in a world that offers women few honest paths to independence.

Read free now No app, no sign-up. Your place is saved automatically. Or download for your e-reader ↓
  • London (England)
  • Picaresque literature
  • Adventure stories
  • Criminals
  • Prostitutes
  • Children of prisoners
  • British · Virginia
  • Women · England

Read the opening

The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders, &c.

Who was Born in Newgate, and during a Life of continu’d Variety for Threescore Years, besides her Childhood, was Twelve Year a Whore, five times a Wife (whereof once to her own Brother), Twelve Year a Thief, Eight Year a Transported Felon in Virginia, at last grew Rich, liv’d Honest, and dies a Penitent. Written from her own Memorandums . . .

by Daniel Defoe

THE AUTHOR’S PREFACE

The world is so taken up of late with novels and romances, that it will be hard for a private history to be taken for genuine, where the names and other circumstances of the person are concealed, and on this account we must be content to leave the reader to pass his own opinion upon the ensuing sheet, and take it just as he pleases.

Keep reading The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders →

Download for your e-reader

Files are provided by Project Gutenberg. On a Kindle, the simplest route is to send the EPUB with Amazon’s Send to Kindle. Downloaded copies don’t sync with your place on Classic Book Reader.

About this edition

This free edition of The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #370, released 1995-12-01. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Novels, Classics of Literature, British Literature.

Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).

More by Daniel Defoe