He studied at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he earned a Master of Arts and a doctoral degree, and was a Woodrow Wilson Fellow.
[1][2] He authored several books published in England, Japan, Turkey, and the United States, including A Dab of Dickens & A Touch of Twain (Simon & Schuster) - an edited collection of several of his well-known lectures,[3] and Pickwick Papers: An Annotated Bibliography.
[5][6] The premiere collaboration of The Night Before Christmas Carol featured actor Jeffrey West, who originated the role on stages in North Carolina.
In 2009, he was inducted into the Royal Society of Arts in England for his academic work and service in promoting Charles Dickens.
[10] In 2014, Engel was named Tar Heel of the Week by the News and Observer for his thirty years of delivering public programs in the humanities and sponsoring state and national literary contests for high school students.