The Victorian Period revolves around the political career of Queen Victoria. She was crowned in 1837 and died in 1901 (which put a definite end to her political career). A great deal of change took place during this period — brought about because of the Industrial Revolution; so it's not surprising that the literature of the period is often concerned with social reform.
1. Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Victorian Age
W.W. Norton. This volume is part of the Norton series of anthologies, which each focuses on a particular period of English literature. A companion CD is also available. "The Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Victorian Age" is great for focused study or an introduction to the period.
2. Victorian People and Ideas: A Companion for the Modern Reader
by Richard Daniel Altick. W.W. Norton & Co. This work includes careful analysis of Victorian literature and culture. Sections include: "The Longest Reign (1837-1901)," "The Victorians: Actors and Audience," "The Spirit of the Age: Time, Place, and Change," and "The Utilitarian Spirit."
3. A Companion to Victorian Literature and Culture
by Herbert F. Tucker. Blackwell Publishers. This book is the product of 30 writers from around the world. They've created a comprehensive view of Victorian literature as they discuss literary criticism, life writing, poetry, and publishing.
4. The Cambridge Companion to Victorian Poetry
by Joseph Bristow, Editor. Cambridge University Press. This book is an introduction to the works of Victorian poets, including: Robert Browning, Alfred Tennyson, Amy Levy, Augusta Webster, and others. Also, find a chronology to the Victorian period, along with a guide for further reading.5. The Cambridge Companion to the Victorian Novel
by Deirdre David, Editor. Cambridge University Press. Find essays about Charles Dickens, the Bronte sisters, George Eliot, Olive Schreiner, Wilkie Collins, and H. Rider Haggard. This book is a good introduction to the history of the novel, but also covers cultural topics including religion, science, gender, and sexuality.6. The Victorian Period: The Intellectual and Cultural Context of English
by Robin Gilmour. Addison-Wesley. Chapters include "Art and society," "Biblical history," "Useable pasts," "The crises of faith," "The culture of politics," "Empire and Utopia," and more.7. Victorian Prose: An Anthology
by Rosemary J. Mundhenk, Editor, and Luann McCracken Fletcher, Editor. Columbia University Press. "Victorian Prose" includes works by Carlyle, Newman, Mill, Arnold, and Ruskin, but also by Mary Prince, Dinah M. Craik, Florence Nightingale, Frances P. Cobbe, and Lucie Duff Gordon.8. Victorian Ghost Stories: An Oxford Anthology
by R.A. Gilbert Editor. Oxford University Press. This anthology features the supernatural woks of Elizabeth Gaskell, Charles Dickens, Henry James, Wilkie Collins, Amelia B. Edwards, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Rudyard Kipling. If you enjoy a good ghost story, these 35 tales will give you a fill of haunted houses, warnings, spirits, and more.9. The Broadview Anthology of Victorian Poetry & Poetic Theory
by Vivienne Jill Rundle and Thomas J. Collins. Broadview Press. This work is shorter than the standard anthologies, but it includes the major works of Victorian writers, including: Felicia Hemans, Letitia Landon, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Edward Fitzgerald, Alfred Tennyson, Robert Browning, Oscar Wilde, Rudyard Kipling, Ernest Dowson, Charlotte Mew, John Stuart Mill, Walter Pater, and more.