双城记是狄更斯的长篇历史小说，英语是A Tale of Two Cities.中文译为双城记。其名句是这是最好的时代，也是最糟糕的时代，英语是It was the best of times it was the worst of times.

“It was the best of times,it was the worst of times,it was the age of wisdom,it was the age of foolishness,it was the epoch of belief,it was the epoch of incredulity,”“it was the season of Light,it was the season of Darkness,it was the spring of hope,it was the winter of despair。”

任何时代都被可以这么形容。对一些人来说是最好的时代，对一些人来说是最坏的时代。他们在宫殿中翩翩起舞，他们在阴冷处垂死挣扎；智慧的人更智慧，愚昧的人更愚昧；虔信的人追随着，怀疑的人推翻着；善良的人被欺骗，诚实的人被质疑；光明驱赶黑暗，黑暗隐没光明；希望依旧，绝望更深。

《双城记》以法国大革命为背景，讲述了发生在法国巴黎和英国伦敦这两个城市之间的故事。狄更斯的这部作品所要表达的主题：通过法国大革命来对英国的统治阶级提出警告，同时也对人民以暴力对抗暴政这种行为提出了质疑，力求在此基础上找出一条适合英国自身发展的道路。