sentences:  "The Potato Factory" has been the subject of some controversy regarding its historical accuracy and its portrayal of Jewish characters.The book is based on Ikey Solomon, the so-called "Prince of Fences", and the basis of the Fagin character in the Charles Dickens novel "Oliver Twist".Courtenay states in the book's introduction that it is a fictional historical novel based on extensive research, but portrays fictionalised versions of the characters.