Mark Twain: A Life

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Absolutely marvelous book!

A Full, Rich Life

Great account of a remarkable American life

3.5, Round Up to 4 Stars.

Simply THE best Mark Twain biography

Mark Twain: A Life
Ron Powers
Manufacturer: Free Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0743248996

Amazon.com

Mark Twain grew up with America. Born in 1835, he reached adulthood as the country was expanding and threatening to splinter all at once. Along with his towering talent and personality, his timing and instinct for finding the action allowed him to play a major role in pushing the boundaries of American culture and mythology by creating a new approach to literature. "Breaching the ranks of New England literary culture was Clemens's most important achievement (short of his actual works), and a signal liberating event in the country's imaginative history," writes Ron Powers in this dazzling biography. Not only did he observe and chronicle this cultural shift, he participated in it, allowing him to report "from the yeasty perspective of the common man." While still Sam Clemens, he worked as a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River and experienced the Wild West of the Nevada Territory as a miner, land prospector, and newspaperman. Later, while still the people's champion, he married into wealth and ran with the moneyed class of the Gilded Age--until his money ran out--and toured the world meeting with the famous and powerful at every stop. He was, as Powers puts it, "the nation's first rock star." But Twain was more than just a writer and Powers strives to cover all sides of this complex man. Employing an approach he calls "interpretive portraiture," he explores Twain's personal relations, temperament, religious skepticism, and psychology as closely as his written work. He discusses Twain's zeal for life along with his "chronic insecurity," and describes how this eternally optimistic and forward-looking man was prone to spells of nihilism and despair. Powers is a talented and lively writer clearly up to the task of covering this American legend, and his book vividly and thoroughly explains why Twain was "the representative figure of his nation and his century." --Shawn Carkonen

Book Description

Mark Twain founded the American voice. His works are a living national treasury: taught, quoted, and reprinted more than those of any writer except Shakespeare. His awestruck contemporaries saw him as the representative figure of his times, and his influence has deeply flavored the 20th and 21st centuries. Yet somehow, beneath the vast flowing river of literature that he left behind -- books, sketches, speeches, not to mention the thousands of letters to his friends and his remarkable entries in private journals -- the man who became Mark Twain, Samuel Langhorne Clemens, has receded from view, leaving us with only faint and often trivialized remnants of his towering personality.

In Mark Twain, Ron Powers consummates years of thought and research with a tour de force on the life of our culture's founding father, re-creating the 19th century's vital landscapes and tumultuous events while restoring the human being at their center. He offers Sam Clemens as he lived, breathed, and wrote -- drawing heavily on the preserved viewpoints of the people who knew him best (especially the great William Dean Howells, his most admiring friend and literary co-conspirator), and on the annals of the American 19th century that he helped shape. Powers's prose rivals Mark Twain's own in its blend of humor, telling detail, and flights of lyricism. With the assistance of the Mark Twain Project at Berkeley, he has been able to draw on thousands of letters and notebook entries, many only recently discovered.

It is hard to imagine a life that encompassed more of its times. Sam Clemens left his frontier boyhood in Missouri for a life on the Mississippi during the golden age of steamboats. He skirted the western theater of the Civil War before taking off for an uproarious drunken newspaper career in the Nevada of the Wild West. As his fame as a humorist and lecturer spread around the country, he took the East Coast by storm, witnessing the extremes of wealth and poverty of New York City and the Gilded Age (which he named). He traveled to Europe on the first American pleasure cruise and revitalized the prim genre of travel writing. He wooed and won his lifelong devoted wife, yet quietly pined for the girl who was his first crush and whom he would re-encounter many decades later. He invented and invested in get-rich-quick schemes. He became the toast of Europe and a celebrity who toured the globe. His comments on everything he saw, many published here for the first time, are priceless.

The man who emerges in Powers's brilliant telling is both the magnetic, acerbic, and hilarious Mark Twain of myth and a devoted friend, husband, and father; a whirlwind of optimism and restless energy; and above all, a wide-eared and wide-eyed observer who absorbed every sight and sound, and poured it into his characters, plots, jokes, businesses, and life. Mark Twain left us our greatest voice. Samuel Clemens left us one of our most full and American of lives.

"No one understands the complicated American the world knows as Mark Twain better than Ron Powers. Finally, we have scholarship and writing worthy of the man. Powers's prose is insightful, elegant, and gets to the center of Twain's life, humor, tragedy, and outrage."

Ken Burns

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"Mark Twain founded the American voice. His works are a living national treasury: taught, quoted, and reprinted more than those of any writer except Shakespeare. His awestruck contemporaries saw him as the representative figure of his times, and his influence has deeply flavored the 20th and 21st centuries. Yet somehow, beneath the vast flowing river of literature that he left behind -- books, sketches, speeches, not to mention the thousands of letters to his friends and his remarkable entries in private journals -- the man who became Mark Twain, Samuel Langhorne Clemens, has receded from view, leaving us with only faint and often trivialized remnants of his towering personality. In Mark Twain, Ron Powers consummates years of thought and research with a tour de force on the life of our culture's founding father, re-creating the 19th century's vital landscapes and tumultuous events while restoring the human being at their center. He offers Sam Clemens as he lived, breathed, and wrote -- drawing heavily on the preserved viewpoints of the people who knew him best (especially the great William Dean Howells, his most admiring friend and literary co-conspirator), and on the annals of the American 19th century that he helped shape. Powers's prose rivals Mark Twain's own in its blend of humor, telling detail, and flights of lyricism. With the assistance of the Mark Twain Project at Berkeley, he has been able to draw on thousands of letters and notebook entries, many only recently discovered. It is hard to imagine a life that encompassed more of its times. Sam Clemens left his frontier boyhood in Missouri for a life on the Mississippi during the golden age of steamboats. He skirted the western theater of the Civil War before taking off for an uproarious drunken newspaper career in the Nevada of the Wild West. As his fame as a humorist and lecturer spread around the country, he took the East Coast by storm, witnessing the extremes of wealth and poverty of New York City and the Gilded Age (which he named). He traveled to Europe on the first American pleasure cruise and revitalized the prim genre of travel writing. He wooed and won his lifelong devoted wife, yet quietly pined for the girl who was his first crush and whom he would re-encounter many decades later. He invented and invested in get-rich-quick schemes. He became the toast of Europe and a celebrity who toured the globe. His comments on everything he saw, many published here for the first time, are priceless. The man who emerges in Powers's brilliant telling is both the magnetic, acerbic, and hilarious Mark Twain of myth and a devoted friend, husband, and father; a whirlwind of optimism and restless energy; and above all, a wide-eared and wide-eyed observer who absorbed every sight and sound, and poured it into his characters, plots, jokes, businesses, and life. Mark Twain left us our greatest voice. Samuel Clemens left us one of our most full and American of lives. "

Customer Reviews:

Absolutely marvelous book!.......2006-12-28

Powers gives us a terrific chronology, densely packed information, charming and insightful prose, plenty of great Twain quotes and anecdotes, empathy for the tragedies of Twain's life and twitting of his oddities when called for. I found it quite remarkable that the book could be so factual and also so readable. There's an excellent index, solid background references, and many laugh-out-loud moments. Adding to the pleasaure of this reading experience are some delightful and - new to me - photographs. Strongly recommend this outstanding biography.

A Full, Rich Life.......2006-10-29

This thorough and well-written biography of a gifted indivudual leaves one with the feeling of having known Mark Twain, Samuel Clemmens, personally. The book offers two additional values: One is getting a glinpse of what life was like during the late 19th century. The other is what it meant to experience the Civil War from a state so far removed from the action that the war seemed to be going on in another country.

Great account of a remarkable American life.......2006-10-08

An interesting biography of Mark Twain aka Samuel Clemens, a journalist and a writer.

Although he had no formal education, Mark Twain was arguably the best English language writer since Shakespeare, with his greatest contribution to the American literature being the novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Mark Twain traveled around the world, and had a great sense of humanity

He was a patriot who loved his country and the 19th century. But he condemned his American society for its hypocrisy. He was anti-colonial and anti-imperialist. He condemned the US for the invasion of Cuba and the Philippines, and the annexation of its neighbor, Mexico.

3.5, Round Up to 4 Stars........2006-10-01

You don't need to be incredibly familiar with Mark Twain's novels to follow this biography. In an apparently un-Twain-like linear fashion, Powers discusses the sources of Sam Clemens' stories while describing the formative years of his life. He then references these early experiences in later chapters when discussing the motivation behind each of Twain's works. He goes into great detail about the writing process, how manuscripts can begin vigorously, be set aside for a decade, then finished when enough inspiration has accumulated or enough memories have congealed to round out the story.

I don't think I've ever read a biography of an author. But Sam Clemens' lead a hectic life outside of literature. Powers covers everything from Clemens' boyhood adventures to his myopic business ventures, from his glory days as a Mississippi steamboat pilot to his failure as a Nevadan silver miner. Once his personal life is fleshed out and his acquaintances are described, it's easier to see how the writing of Mark Twain became the copyrighted American voice of the late 19th century.

My only serious complaint about this biography is the vocabulary. How many times can you drop the word "absquatulated" in a book and not sound pompous?

Simply THE best Mark Twain biography.......2006-09-16

Mr. Powers leaves every other Mark Twain biographer in the dust. This work is not only beautifully detailed and researched; it is a constantly engaging 'page turner.' Beyond all that Mr. Power's own gift as a writer is extraordinary...his words literally leap from the page. One of the best reads I have had in a long time.

Mark Twain's Helpful Hints for Good Living: A Handbook for the Damned Human Race

Average customer rating:

A Treasure
Twain at his best.
"Etiquette requires us to respect the human race"

Mark Twain's Helpful Hints for Good Living: A Handbook for the Damned Human Race
Mark Twain
Manufacturer: University of California Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

ASIN: 0520242459

Book Description

Irreverent, charming, eminently quotable, this handbook--an eccentric etiquette guide for the human race--contains sixty-nine aphorisms, anecdotes, whimsical suggestions, maxims, and cautionary tales from Mark Twain's private and published writings. It dispenses advice and reflections on family life and public manners; opinions on topics such as dress, health, food, and childrearing and safety; and more specialized tips, such as those for dealing with annoying salesmen and burglars. Culled from Twain's personal letters, autobiographical writings, speeches, novels, and sketches, these pieces are delightfully fresh, witty, startlingly relevant, and bursting with Twain's characteristic ebullience for life. They also remind us exactly how Mark Twain came to be the most distinctive and well-known American literary voice in the world. These texts, some of them new or out of print for decades, have been selected and meticulously prepared by the editors at the Mark Twain Project.

Customer Reviews:

A Treasure.......2007-02-11

Here are some useful living tips, advice and observations from that quintessential American literary figure Mark Twain, real name Samuel L. Clemens. This compilation contains a delightful mix of humorous writings on the mundane and sometimes very unusual occurrences that reflected his many gifts as a writer/humorist. Many of these snippets are from some of his more famous works, while others are from personal sketches and writings not as well known. The tarantulas escape, a borrowed overcoat, a lecture to a youth group, the use of foul language, a note to a burglar, and so many other little anecdotes, observations, and etc will elicit periods of laughter from the reader, as it did for me. A wonderful little treasure.

Twain at his best........2007-01-10

Great book with lots of his famous quotes that still apply today.

"Etiquette requires us to respect the human race".......2006-02-23

Mark Twain in his writing very often surprises us and makes us laugh. His greatest gift is his humor. And the wisdom he provides on various aspects of daily living however sarcastic and cynical it may seem at times is grounded in a sane realistic view of humanity.

Average customer rating:

The Hobo Philosopher
Roughing IT
Witty, Insightful, and Entertaining
A Different Time
Most amazing book ever...

Roughing It (Enriched Classic Series)
Mark Twain
Manufacturer: Pocket
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0743436504

Amazon.com

There is no nicer surprise for a reader than to discover that an acknowledged classic really does deliver the goods. Mark Twain's Roughing It is just such a book. The adventure tale is a delight from start to finish and is just as engrossing today as it was 125 years ago when it first appeared.

Roughing It tells the true-ish escapades of Twain in the American West. Although he clearly "speaks with forked tongue," Roughing It is informative as well as humorous. From stagecoach travel to the etiquette of prospecting, the modern reader gains considerable insight into that much-fictionalized time and place. Do you know about sagebrush, for example?

Sage-brush is very fair fuel, but as a vegetable it is a distinguished failure. Nothing can abide the taste of it but the jackass and his illegitimate child, the mule. But their testimony to its nutritiousness is worth nothing, for they will eat pine knots, or anthracite coal, or brass filings, or lead pipe, or old bottles, or anything that comes handy, and then go off looking as grateful as if they had had oysters for dinner.

Roughing It is informally structured around the narrator's attempts to strike it rich. He meets a motley, colorful crew in the process; many mishaps occur, and it shouldn't surprise you that Twain does not emerge a man of means. But he withstands it all in such a relentless good humor that his misfortune inspires laughter. Roughing It is wonderful entertainment and reminds you how funny the world can be--even its grimmer districts--when you're traveling with the right writer.

Book Description

Though known throughout the world for his fictional novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain was also a skilled chronicler of his own life and experiences. In his youth, Twain traveled extensively throughout the untamed American West with his brother, working his way from town to town in a variety of jobs, including gold prospector, reporter, and lecturer. Roughing It is Twain's personal recollection of his wanderlust years. It is a wildly humorous adventure yarn that combines hard facts with a healthy dose of the author's unique perspective, one that helped define the course of American literature.

Pocket Books' Enriched Classics present the great works of world literature enriched for the contemporary reader. This edition of Roughing It has been prepared by Professor Henry B. Wonham of the University of Oregon. It includes his introduction, notes, selection of critical excerpts, and suggestions for further reading as well as a unique visual essay of period illustrations and photographs.

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Originally published over 100 years ago, Roughing It was Mark Twain's second major work after the success of his 1869 travel book, Innocents Abroad. This time Twain travels through the wild west of America. With relentless good humor, Twain tells of his misfortunes during the quest to strike it rich by prospecting in the silver mines. Wonderfully entertaining, Twain successfully finds humor in spite of his mishaps while also giving the reader insight into that time and place of American history. Marvelously illustrated with numerous pictures.

Customer Reviews:

The Hobo Philosopher.......2007-09-15

This is the first Mark Twain book that I ever read. It is about his "Going West Young man" around the time of the Civil War. If you like travel books this is a classic. America and Americans, people and human nature and Mark Twain's take on the whole bit. If you have never read any of Mark Twain's non-fiction this is a great place to start. I don't really know if America has produced and funnier, more cleaver humorist than this man. If we have I have yet to find him. This book will never die - not as long as there are humans around with a sense of humor.

Roughing IT.......2007-07-30

If you are into stories about the old west, Twain tells it like it was but with a great humorous twist. A great book, really enjoyed it. Wish I had found it years ago, but better late than never.

Witty, Insightful, and Entertaining.......2007-06-27

It appears as though Clemens was ahead of the times with this book. The relatively short chapters seem like they could entertain readers who know nothing other than Dan Brown. As anecdote spills in anecdote, readers can't help but keep reading this book. I was surprised by how many times I found myself laughing out loud either from witticisms or the situational irony throughout the book. Altogether, a great read, that has prompted me to buy Innocents Abroad.

A Different Time.......2007-06-27

This is a good read that describes life in a different time. Some of it is factual and some is stretched but it is all entertaining.

Most amazing book ever..........2006-09-26

Mark Twain has been my favorite author since I read Huckleberry Finn in sixth grade. I've tried extremely hard to read every single word he's written (besides, I assume, personal letters)...including, of course, the complete short stories (I love The Diaries of Adam and Eve, by the way)...but I digress.

Roughing It is one of my top three books of all time (the other two, in case anyone was wondering, are Les Miserables and Into Thin Air [didn't say it was from a literary standpoint, just my personal opinion]). This is mostly because of the remarkably sharp prose. I love that this stuff (or most of it) actually happened to him, that he doesn't mind putting himself down and doesn't even make a big deal out of it...and...of course...The Book of Mormon. Who in their right mind wouldn't immediately fall in love with Mr. Twain after reading his dissection of The Book of Mormon?

Other reviewers have mentioned the digressions that they feel take away from the overall book. The entire book, my friends, is a digression. That is the point of the book. Those years of his life had ABSOLUTELY NO POINT. He was digressing from his life. That's what makes it hilarious. He just jumps from place to place (the first part is all about his travels in a stagecoach to become the undersecretary, a position he desperately wanted, or at least sarcastically-desperately...and then when he finally gets to Carson he gets bored in about a chapter and leaves, and never goes back). I love how there's something quotably hilarious about every other paragraph, and the understatement of the humour just makes it more hilarious!

I've read this book three times in about four years, and I recommend it to about anyone interested in an extremely funny...diversion.

Mark Twain : Mississippi Writings : Tom Sawyer, Life on the Mississippi, Huckleberry Finn, Pudd'nhead Wilson (Library of America)

Average customer rating:

Puddin' head Wilson: A Brief Review
Great edition
Wonderful book, wonderful series
A Grand View of A Grandeur
ACCESSIBLE TWAIN IN A HANDSOME BOOK

Mark Twain : Mississippi Writings : Tom Sawyer, Life on the Mississippi, Huckleberry Finn, Pudd'nhead Wilson (Library of America)
Mark Twain
Manufacturer: Library of America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Classics | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0940450070

Book Description

Here for the first time in one volume are the most famous and characteristic of Mark Twain's works. Through each of them runs the powerful and majestic Mississippi. The river represented for Twain the complex and contradictory possibilities in his own and the nation's life: the place where civilization's comforts meet the violence and promise of freedom of the frontier. It was the place, too, where Twain's youthful innocence confronted the grim reality of slavery. The nostalgic re-creation of childhood in "Tom Sawyer"--"simply a hymn put into prose form to give it a worldly air," said Twain--and the richly anecdotal memoir of his days as a riverboat pilot in "Life on the Mississippi" give way to the realism and often dark comedy of "Huckleberry Finn" and the troubled exploration of slavery in his mystery, "Pudd'nhead Wilson." Together, these four books trace the central trajectory of his life and career, and they can be read as a single masterpiece.

Customer Reviews:

Puddin' head Wilson: A Brief Review.......2004-01-17

One of the most entertaining books I have read in a long time. Truly, "a page turner". Enlightening insight into southern society in smalltown Missouri during the 1840's.

Great edition.......2003-11-04

I doubt that anyone reading these reviews is trying to decide whether or not they will enjoy reading the stories in this volume - most likely they've read them already and want to know if this is an edition worth buying. This is definitely worth buying. The printing is crisp. The paper is lightweight, smooth-surfaced, and acid-free; over 1100 pages are only 1 and 1/8 inches thick. The dimensions are perfect. The binding appears to be strong yet limber - the book opens easily with good visualization of all margins. Library of America, the publishers, seems dedicated not only to preserving American writings, but doing so with style. I plan to put more of their books on my wish list - Melville and Hawthorne perhaps. My only regret is that I already own the complete writing of Poe from another publisher.

Wonderful book, wonderful series.......2002-06-08

If pressed to mention a series of books I love more than all others, I would have to cite Library of America; this is not because I am a fan of stictly American literature, but because I have never seen a series so dedicated--and so good at--a mission of preserving and presenting a body of literature of such greatness in such a worthy manner. Perhaps some day there will be a Library of Russia, Library of France, Library of England, etc.

Twain is a delight and underrated by modern critics; here lies a good collection of some of his fine works. Especially good are Life on the Mississippi and Pudd'nhead Wilson, along with the indesposable Huckleberry Finn. Also contained is Tom Sawyer, which I cannot praise, but I cannot deny its position as a classic and its deservence to be included in this volume.

A Grand View of A Grandeur.......2002-01-29

Once they were absolute rulers - laws made to meet their needs, unstinting respect their due, their commands obeyed without hesitation or reluctance. They are vanished today, the last of their lineage in tourist boats, unremarked, nearly unremembered. Nearly two centuries ago, the Mississippi steamboat pilot was a legendary figure. Mark Twain conveys us to that time and environment in one of his finest writings. Life On the Mississippi is a superb descriptive achievement in portraying the river scene , but also conveys vivid images of the people living on and along it. It's an outstanding example of painting with both a broad brush and enhancing with fine detail.

Beginning with a history of European "discovery" and exploration of this mighty stream, Twain moves us into his own history as a "cub" pilot. Perhaps no-one before or since has so effectively exposed what it meant to "tackle the river" in learning to safely man the wheel of a river steamer. From his first astonishment at discovering he must "get a notebook and write down" the names of all the points, landmarks, snags and "crossings" through the realization that most of that information would change before his next trip, he comes to understand that a pilot must "know the river" with full dedication. As we follow him through the process he introduces us to the river's wonders and the people it supports. He explains the ranking of pilots, steamboat captains, mates and "hands." None of his observations are boring, from the most mundane river condition to dramatic events such as boiler explosions.

Those fearing that Twain's information may be "outdated" may take heart. Much of the book views his early days on the river from the vantage point of thirty years later. He is reminiscing, but Twain's excellent style brings us with him into each memory. Our feelings readily align with his as he guides us. The latter part of the book is a collection of images of the river valley in the latter part of the 19th Century as Twain revisits the river after a long absence. The only real distinction, apart from the automobile, which did for the railroad what the latter did to the steamboat, are the statistics of agriculture and industry. His descriptions of towns, villages and cities differ little from what we might encounter duplicating his journey.

During this pilgrimage, Twain brings in numerous anecdotal episodes to further sparkle his descriptive and historical accounts. Although all are entertaining at one level or another, several stand out as representatives of Twain's inventive genius. Ritter's Narrative is among the grimmest of Twain's essays in any of his publications. It's a story of a long-term quest for vengeance with a bizarre outcome. A far lighter note is struck with the story of a sleepwalking steamboat pilot. An account of the pilots organizing a "protective association" is told with light humour, not quite obscuring the serious nature of its intent.

In all, no matter that this book's focus lies in a period stretching back nearly two centuries, the writing is vigorous enough to capture today's readers. The history is related with Twain's always lively skill, something as mundane as a sunset is imparted with his special verve. This book can be taken up repeatedly; for reminders of a lost era, for an examination of values or, the best reason of all, for a prime example of what North America's greatest writer could produce in his passion for narrative.

ACCESSIBLE TWAIN IN A HANDSOME BOOK.......2001-09-01

This is the kind of book reserved for the word "volume" and by that I mean it carries all the weight of Twain's most accessible works. All of the Library of America books carry this weight but this was one of the first and deservedly so. I'm reviewing this book not just on its contents but on its sheer style and scholarly editing, its fitness in the hand (or lap), the way it will look on your bookshelf and the 10-point Linotron Galliard printing that makes the very act of reading much easier.
Now, the contents cannot be less magnificent as the river all these writings have in common. Funny, wise and as much a part of 19th century American history as you'll find anywhere, these are great examples of the best American writing in one "volume" by one of the world's most recognized authors. No self-respecting booklover should be without it.

Life on the Mississippi (Signet Classics)

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"S-T-E-A-M-boat a-comin'!"
Twain on the Mississippi
Mark Twain's Finest Writing
A compelling monologue of biography, geography and history

Life on the Mississippi (Signet Classics)
Mark Twain
Manufacturer: Signet Classics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0451528174
Release Date: 2001-11-07

Book Description

A stirring account of America's vanished past...
The book that earned Mark Twain his first recognition as a serious writer...

Discover the magic of life on the Mississippi.

At once a romantic history of a mighty river, an autobiographical account of Mark Twain's early steamboat days, and a storehouse of humorous anecdotes and sketches, Life on the Mississippi is the raw material from which Twain wrote his finest novel-The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

"The Lincoln of our literature." (William Dean Howells)

Customer Reviews:

"S-T-E-A-M-boat a-comin'!" .......2007-04-11

In Life on the Mississippi the steamboat is depicted as the workhorse of Midwest expansion. Prior to the advent of the railroad efficient inland transportation was confined to waterways and the Mississippi river basin , with "about 1,250,000 square miles," was the "Body of the Nation." (Twain, preface) Mark Twain fulfills his boyhood dream of becoming a river boat pilot and, returning some twenty-one years later, writes of his youthful experiences and later observations

The steamboat was a technological phenomena. The vehicle that evolved to meet the unique demands of this particular environment was a special design of river boat. In his own inimical style Mark Twain captures both the excitement of the riverboat's arrival and describes its essential components:

"She is long and sharp and trim and pretty; she has two tall, fancy-topped chimneys, with a gilded device of some kind swung between them; a fanciful pilothouse, all glass and "gingerbread," perched on top of the "texas" deck behind them; the paddle-boxes are gorgeous with a picture or with gilded rays above the boat's name; the boiler deck; the hurricane deck, and the texas deck are fenced and ornamented with clean white railings; there is a flag gallantly flying from the jack-staff; the furnace doors are open and the fires glaring bravely; the upper decks are black with passengers; the captain stands by the big bell calm, imposing, the envy of all; great volumes of the blackest smoke are rolling and tumbling out of the chimneys...the crew are grouped on the forecastle; the broad stage is run far out over the port bow, and an envied deck hand stands picturesquely on the end of it with a coil of rope in his hand; the pent steam is screaming through the gauge cocks; the captain lifts his hand, a bell rings, the wheels stop; then turn, back, churning the water to foam, and the steamer is at rest." (27)

Within a period of ten minutes the boat has been offloaded, loaded and departed. It is an efficiency of system and design ideally suited to its unique purposes, but as the Civil War looms its days are numbered. By then the steamboat had already evolved to it most advanced state and the steam locomotive has become the dominant form of transportation

As a literary piece by a "brilliant travel writer and incomparable humorist" (Kaplan, in Twain, xvii) Life on the Mississippi earned its accolades, but, as a window into a period of time, one can extract an eyewitnesses truth. In Life on the Mississippi, Mark Twain describes the latter period of the steamboat's heyday dramatically cut short. Wartime technology did not improve the riverboat other than to convert it into an instrument of war. What doomed the steamboat to oblivion was the advent of the steam locomotive and the railroads. The steamboat well served the purposes of river life in its time but was eclipsed by the railroad.

That the steamboat was functional is indisputable, but if form determines function, it was a perfect adaptation of a water craft in conformity with purpose and contemporary technology. Combined with light weight and flexible wood construction the steamboat evolved into a shallow draft, wide beamed, low freeboard hull propelled by stern or side paddle wheels. The overall size of a steamboat was a compromise between maneuverability and economy. Power plant, fuel, cargo and passengers were accommodated within a superstructure rising above the hull. Bulk items, machinery, deck hands and low fare passengers were located on the main deck; superior public and private accommodations at higher fares were on the upper decks. Here travelers could enjoy incomparable luxury.

High on top of all was the pilothouse. River pilots, by necessity of their position earned through their experience and knowledge of the river, had the best view. By status, they were the pinnacle of river hierarchy. Mark Twain, on his 1882 return to the river, quaintly asks of a fellow passenger he suspects of being a river pilot: "Have you ever traveled with a panorama." The passenger responds, "I have formerly served in that capacity. [Twain's] suspicion was confirmed." (315) Only higher than the pilothouse were the tall stacks made so for the purpose of disgorging noxious black smoke and dangerous smoldering ash to the wind.

All components contributed to functionality, but perhaps the "stage" or ramp which bridged the gap between the boat and shore, contributed most to its versatility. It enabled the boat to be hailed from landings along the shore without the aid of a dock. As an apprentice, Mark Twain is left alone on the bridge for the first time by his mentor. His initial proud serenity is broken by a sudden awareness that the boat is heading for imminent impact with a "bluff reef." His panicked reaction throws the ship into reverse, but he is saved by the return of the pilot who calmly restores order and chastises him. "When you have a hail, my boy, you ought to tap the big bell three times before you land, so the engineers can get ready." (53) The "bluff reef" was actually a wind reef (from the effect of wind on the surface) and they sailed uneventfully through it.

The romance of the steamboat era is tarnished by frequent tragedy. Mark Twain loses his brother Henry, a cabin boy on the Pennsylvania, who died when the ship's boilers explode in June 1858. The hazards of operating year round and during night and day, plus the varying river conditions contributed to mistakes of judgment and probably just bad luck too! The pilot may have been king, but he was still human and suffered from the human faults of vain glory, unrealistic confidence, ego, and infallibility.

When he returns to the river in 1882 after an absence of twenty-one years, Mark Twain notes the changes that have occurred on the river. There are very few ships left in operation. Passenger travel is limited in frequency and destinations. The romance he once knew is gone, but a new one is beginning, the romance of the rails.

Today we know that the railroad too would have its heyday and, in time, its romance would also wane. But has the romance of the steamboat and rail eras disappeared? Today you can take cruises on Mississippi riverboats and luxury train trips across the continent. The difference now is that trips are for novelty and not necessity. The romance only comes from the remembrance of a time past and not the needs of the present.

Twain on the Mississippi.......2005-12-02

This is the book that Mark Twain himself thought to be his greatest. It is basically a memoir in two parts of his life spent on the river with historical sketches, statistics, and other matters thrown in.

The first part of the book tells of Twain's early years as a riverboat pilot. He talks about being a cub pilot, about learning about the intricacies of the river and the difficulties of navigating it, and about his mentor Horace Bixby. Twain's love of the river and his pride in "mastering" it are made obvious in these chapters.

The second part recounts Twain's return to the river in 1882, mainly to "see it again" in preparation of writing this book. Starting in St. Louis, he first goes south through Baton Rouge to New Orleans. He spends a bit of time there and describes life as he sees it in the city (there's a funny chapter regarding the above-ground cemeteries and an argument about cremation). Then he heads north on the steamboat City of Baton Rouge, piloted by his old mentor Horace Bixby. He stops off in Hannibal for three days, just enough time to see how much the town and some old acquaintances have changed, and then continues all the way to St. Paul, Minnesota.

Twain's humor, as he recounts conversations with people, sights seen, reminiscences dredged up, and a myriad of other matters that fill the book, is always evident. It's one of the great books on the mighty river, and whether you are a lover of the works of Mark Twain or interested in the Mississippi River during the time period just before and after the Civil War, you will enjoy this book.

Mark Twain's Finest Writing.......2003-06-27

I read this recently after having kept a copy around for years; I now wish I had read it years ago. It is witty, observant, and a wonderful slice of American history; the
now-vanished steamboat culture comes alive like nowhere
else. However, the best part is the contrast between the author's confident early youthful years and the much later, postwar years of bittersweet reminiscence and regret for what has passed, never to return. A wonderful book - I simply cannot praise it highly enough.

A compelling monologue of biography, geography and history.......2002-03-08

Let me guess: your total exposure to Mark Twain came in high school, when you were forced to read about the antics of Huck Finn or Tom Sawyer, right? Well, now that you've reached adulthood, you should make time to read _Life on the Mississippi_. It's mandatory reading if you live in a state that borders the great river, anywhere from Minnesota down to Louisiana. It's mandatory reading if you have come to that point in life when you can suddenly appreciate American history and post-Civil War stories written by someone who lived through that time.

Writing in the first half of the 1870s, Twain retraces the steps of his youth: the watery highway he knew when he trained to be a riverboat pilot nearly 20 years earlier. He speaks of how life _was_ along the river, and what life _became_. It's almost a "you can't go home again" experience for him, while the reader gets the benefit of discovering both time periods.

Book Description

o Includes all 304 first-edition illustrations by True Williams, Edward F. Mullen, and others
o Provides the first and only text that adheres to the author's wishes in details of wording, spelling, and punctuation, restored from original sources.
o Features expert annotation, specially prepared maps, facsimile manuscript pages, and other supplementary documents
o Reproduces the text and notes of the Mark Twain Project's 1993 edition, winner of the Modern Language Association Prize for a "Distinguished Scholarly Edition"

Mark Twain's humorous account of his six years in Nevada, San Francisco, and the Sandwich Islands is a patchwork of personal anecdotes and tall tales, many of them told in the "vigorous new vernacular" of the West. Selling seventy five thousand copies within a year of its publication in 1872, Roughing It was greeted as a work of "wild, preposterous invention and sublime exaggeration" whose satiric humor made "pretension and false dignity ridiculous." Meticulously restored from a variety of original sources, the text is the first to adhere to the author's wishes in thousands of details of wording, spelling, and punctuation, and includes all of the 304 first-edition illustrations. With its comprehensive and illuminating notes and supplementary materials, which include detailed maps tracing Mark Twain's western travels, this Mark Twain Library Roughing It must be considered the standard edition for readers and students of Mark Twain.

Customer Reviews:

A COMIC GENIUS.......2006-11-17

(born Nov.1835, Florida, Mo.,US-died April 21,1910, Redding,Conn.)
-humorist,writer and lecturer.

'ROUGHING IT'is Twain's decription of his adventures in Nevada,Califonia,and the Sandwich Islands originally published in (1872).After the immediate success of the publication of 'THE INNOCENTS ABROAD'which firmly established Twain's reputation as a writer he was spurned on by the AMERICAN PUBLISHING COMPANY to bring out a volume based on his experiences in the west.Thus, 'ROUGHING IT' was created.A highly entertaining and humurous narrative of his escapades in the Western United States towards the end of the 19th Century.

A little taste:

from (copyright 1979 Running Press)

This is the before and after descriptions of a company of men lost in a snow storm-with little or no hope of survival.

Before (impending doom)
"...Poor Ollendorff broke down and the tears came.He was not alone,for I
was crying too,and so was Mr. Ballou.Ollendorff forgave me for things
I had done and said.Then he got out his bottle of whisky and said that whether he lived or died he would never touch another drop.He said he had given up all hope of life,and although ill-prepared,was ready to submit humbly to his fate-----------Mr.Ballou made remarks of similar purport,and began the reform he could not live to continue,by throwing away his ancient pack of cards--------My own remarks were of the same tenor as those of my comrades.We were all sincere,and all deeply moved and earnest,for we were in the precense of death and without hope.I threw away my pipe,and in doing it,I felt that at last I was free of a hated vice and one that had ridden me like a tyrant all my life.We put our arms around each other's necks and awaited the warning drowziness that occurs with death by freezing.

After-(Alive and Well)

After breakfast we felt better,and the zest of life soon came back.The world looked bright again,and existence was as dear to us as ever.Presently and uneasiness came over me-grew upon me-assailed me without ceasing.Alas,my regeneration was not complete-I wanted to smoke!
I resisted with all my strength,but the flesh was weak.I wandered away alone and wrestled with myself for an hour.I recalled my promises of reform and preached to myself persuasively,unbraidingly,exaustively.But all was in vain,I shortly found myself sneaking amoung the snowdrifts hunting for my pipe.I discovered it after a considerable search,and crept away to hide myself to enjoy it.At last I lit my pipe,and no human can feel meaner and baser than I did then.I was ashamed of being in my own pitiful company.Still dreading discovery,I felt that perhaps the further side of the barn would be somewhat safer,and so I turned the corner.As I turned the corner,smoking,Ollendorff turned the other with his bottle to his lips,and between us sat unconscious Ballou deep in a game of "solitaire" with the old greasy cards..."

Turn to Chapters 22 and 23 for a more cohesive description of this comic episode. Laughter is good medicine,and this is a fun read on one of those gloomy days you might encounter along your way. Enjoy.Good health!

ROUGHING IT.......2005-09-18

This "Mark Twain Project" paperback edition of ROUGHING IT is by far the best version for most readers. It is an excellent value. The 200 pages of "Explanatory Notes" at the end, add greatly to the modern reader's understanding of the 1860's "Wild West". The Early Western Mining Frontier comes vividly and colorfully to life, thanks to the Explanatory Notes' full illumination of the fascinating, often hilarious, eyewitness account of young Sam Clemens.

The 21st century reader now sees the momentous impact of Samuel Colt's "Navy Revolver" on frontier society, fully comprehends a "Stamp Mill's" importance to the silver mines of the Comstock Lode, and is in complete agreement about the "thoroughbrace's" necessity to the Overland Stage traveler's comfort! This edition also contains all 304 first edition illustrations, another great aid allowing the modern reader to take a virtual walk into a vanished time.

In the "Foreword" to this edition, Editor Harriet Elinor Smith notes, " The vernacular style of ROUGHING IT often seems surprisingly fresh to modern readers.....". I'm betting that many readers, younger ones especially, may approach this book with dread, only to become immersed in the rollicking adventure, and reach the end of ROUGHING IT with regret. The readers who return for a second, third or more reading, will discover many levels of depth to ROUGHING IT that will continue to entertain and educate reading after reading, year after year.

From the "Foreword" to this edition, Editor Smith also observes, "Although readers have long been entertained by ROUGHING IT, it has gradually become part of all serious study of American culture. Students of history have come to rely on it for accurate information about the period, and it has played a major role in shaping the myth of the "Wild West".......No examination of American popular culture would be complete without Mark Twain's imaginative reminiscence of what it was like to be "on the ground in person"".

So, if you are tired of all this bickering between the North and South, and feel it may be healthier to get away from the tensions, I hear tell there's a great silver strike in a new territory called "Nevada", near a place called "Virginia City". It's July 1861 and there is an Overland Stage westbound, St Joseph, Missouri to Carson City, Nevada Territory.

Buckle on your Navy Colt and climb aboard!

The Man that Corrupted Hadleyburg and Other Stories and Essays (1900) (Oxford Mark Twain)

Average customer rating:

A bit confusing but. . .

The Man that Corrupted Hadleyburg and Other Stories and Essays (1900) (Oxford Mark Twain)
Mark Twain , and Jeffrey Rubin-Dorsky
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0195101502

Book Description

This collection of 15 pieces by Mark Twain displays, as Cynthia Ozick writes in her introduction, "the entire arsenal of his art: the occasionally reckless polemic, the derisive irony, the intelligent laughter, the verbal stilettos, the blunt country humor, the fervent despair, the hidden jeer, the relishing of palaver and tall tale, the impatient worldliness, and the brilliant forays of language." "The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg," a dark and riveting dissection of a town's hypocrisy, vanity, and misplaced pride, is one of Twain's most ingenious and memorable stories. Whether anatomizing the dynamics of anti-Semitism in "Concerning the Jews" or "Stirring Times in Austria," or looking back on his personal literary odyssey in "My Debut as a Literary Person," Twain is lively and engaging. This volume also contains "My First Lie, and How I Got Out of It," a remarkable essay that begins lightly, but soon turns into a razor sharp attack on humanity's indifference to injustice.

Customer Reviews:

A bit confusing but. . ........2000-03-31

Well, not one of Mark Twain's finest, but The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg is a good book. It deals with the temptation and corruption that occurs in everyones life. A couple receives anonymous money and is forced by reputation to do the right thing. Whether they and the town do is another situation. Eventually the whole community becomes involved and the righteous owner of the money is to be determined. Although it is a little confusing, it makes the reader think just how much money is the greed of all evil.

The $30,000 Bequest and Other Stories (1906) (Oxford Mark Twain)

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The $30,000 Bequest and Other Stories (1906) (Oxford Mark Twain)
Mark Twain , and Judith Yaross Lee
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0195101464

Book Description

Bringing together 38 tales and sketches, The $30,000 Bequest provides a rare long view of Twain's work, covering virtually his entire career, from "Advice to Young Girls" (a spoof that appeared in 1865, just months before he achieved national acclaim for his "Jumping Frog" tale), to the title story, written in 1904. Whether he is probing the dynamics of a marriage in "The $30,000 Bequest," or tapping into the nature of hierarchies of abusive power in "A Dog's Tale," Twain's deft craftsmanship brings energy and life to his prose. The more preposterous his claim, the more diligent his proof--as in "The Danger of Lying in Bed," in which Twain argues--complete with statistics--that lying in bed (where most deaths occur) is more dangerous than traveling. The pieces collected here--alternately playful, poignant, and powerful--are all shaped by Twain's rich and unpredictable imagination. This book, the last miscellany published in his lifetime, captures the many facets of Mark Twain's work.

The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (Penguin Classics)

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Witty assessment of post-Civil War industry and politics. A classic.
"For men are subject to their own impulses as soon as they have parted company with reason"
Let's Do A Deal
Greed
A Tale of Today

The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (Penguin Classics)
Mark Twain , and Charles Dudley Warner
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 014043920X
Release Date: 2001-08-28

Book Description

First published in 1873, The Gilded Age is both a biting satire and a revealing portrait of post-Civil War America-an age of corruption when crooked land speculators, ruthless bankers, and dishonest politicians voraciously took advantage of the nation's peacetime optimism. With his characteristic wit and perception, Mark Twain and his collaborator, Charles Dudley Warner, attack the greed, lust, and naivete of their own time in a work which endures as a valuable social document and one of America's most important satirical novels.

Download Description

The elders of the party were not long in discovering the fact, which almost all travelers to the west soon find out; that the water was poor. It must have been by a lucky premonition of this that they all had brandy flasks with which to qualify the water of the country; and it was no doubt from an uneasy feeling of the danger of being poisoned that they kept experimenting, mixing a little of the dangerous and changing fluid, as they passed along.

Customer Reviews:

Witty assessment of post-Civil War industry and politics. A classic........2007-06-14

Witty, engaging and expertly crafted, The Gilded Age reveals Twain's and Warner's cynicism of American business practices (rampant, unrestrained speculation) and Washington politics post-Civil War. For the most part, the main characters are rather flawed. The sometimes loathsome sometimes loveable Col. Eschol Sellers is a well-meaning huckster. Many of the figures on the periphery are out-and-out crooks, dishonest, slimy sorts that would do or say anything for a buck. The only winner in the end is Philip Sterling, the only character willing to work hard to make an honest fortune.

Some critics have said that this book was Twain's answer to Ben Franklin's elevation of the so-called Protestant work ethic and something of a critique of American capitalism. That conclusion, in my view, is misguided. While Twain's and Warner's contempt of corruption and dishonest business dealings is glaringly obvious from the way the stories are told, they quite as obviously seem to honor those who truly earned their fortunes or made something of themselves by honest, productive effort. Sterling is an example of that. That is the essence of the Protestant work ethic.

Social commentary aside, like Twain's other work, The Gilded Age is terribly funny. About every other page, one of his brilliant witicisms will make you laugh out loud, a situation that can be a bit awkward when reading the book in public.

"For men are subject to their own impulses as soon as they have parted company with reason".......2006-10-09

Literary legend has it that Twain and Warner's wives had prompted these two authors to work together on The Gilded Age. Some versions of the story have it a dinner party challenge-- where the two men were dared to work together in order to produce a novel better than the popular fiction that their wives were reading. Whatever the true cause, it is an interesting experiment. The Gilded Age is a book worth reading, particularly if you are interested in the history or the popular novels of the 1870s.

The story follows the fortune of the good but silly Hawkins family and their children, both biological and adopted. The Hawkins family is chiefly concerned with the idea of making their fortune, and invest a huge amount of hope and trust in their twin poles of "the Tennesee Land" and the schemes of their family friend, Colonel Beriah Sellers.

The plot is extremely melodramatic, much in keeping with popular fiction of the day. Hidden identities, lost parents, ruined women and handsome cads populate the storyline. Mixed in with this is the classic Twain "pen warmed up in Hell"-- he takes on the corruption of the era, pointing his venom at Congress, the railroad, and at the "reconstruction efforts" theoretically designed to improve conditions in the south while actually being little more then efforts to line pockets, thinly disguised.

It is occasionally an uneven ride. The melodramatic plot and characters are often a very odd fit with the vicious,dry and funny commentary that is made about corruption and public morals. I think it is more enjoyable if you have had exposure to contemporary writers such as Mary Jane Holmes. I kept thinking of this as The English Orphans on crack to try to keep the context in mind.

Despite the uneven quality, I really enjoyed the book. The political commentary may miss on some of the specific scandals, but the general points should still be pointy enough to make current politicians wince. And, like most Twain efforts (even a co-authored book like this one) it is often riotously funny.

The introduction to the Penguin edition claims that the Gilded Age will never be forgotten for three reasons:

-- its association with Mark Twain
-- the accomplishment of having given a title to a political era
-- its status as a shockingly accurate mirror of period corruption

I will not argue with that analysis.

Highly recommmended. Kudos to the Penguin Classic edition for the genuinely helpful introduction by Louis J. Budd and the useful notes and appendices at the back of the book.

Let's Do A Deal.......2004-05-25

"The Gilded Age" is a story of corruption and get-rich-quick schemes in the USA after the Civil War. The fulcrum of the book is the Hawkins family, and in particular Laura - a Washington lobbyist whose personal life is deeply flawed. But beyond the Hawkins family, Twain and Warner introduce a cast of characters all of whom have a stake in the expanding US economy (through more or less shady dealing) or in the deep corruption of the political system. It is as if the whole economy was one great poker game, with most of the players cheating shamelessly.

At times "The Gilded Age" is a very uneven novel, perhaps to be expected in a collaborative work. The early chapters especially have a very disjointed feel: time and location leap about too much, the narrative creaks. It was as if the authors had not yet sorted out who the main characters were to be, nor where the majority of the action was to take place. Indeed, as the novel develops, the main scene changes from the mid-West to Washington DC. Once this shift has taken place, the novel becomes more settled, with more scope for satire and character development.

How effective is the novel? Well, many of the references and allusions have lost their impact due to the passage of time, and the limitations of the collaborative nature of the book (as mentioned above) limit rather than help. I prefer Gore Vidal's "American Saga" novels, but in its favour "The Gilded Age" (perhaps due to its proximity to events) does have a feel of authenticity, and does provide another warning that pursuit of money and personal gain to the exclusion of other societal values is highly damaging.

G Rodgers

Greed.......2004-02-18

The post-Civil War years were a time of rapid industrialization in America, aided and abetted by burgeoning plans to build a transcontinental railroad. Many people saw an opportunity to get a piece of the action, to speculate with family savings, the little that there were, in hopes of making millions of dollars in return. Investing in coal mining was one example. It is against this background that _The Gilded Age_ takes place.

Many in Congress saw an opportunity to support various projects that were supposedly for the public good, e.g. building a university for the newly freed slaves upon land, located in Tenneesee, bequeathed by a family patriarch to his children. These schemes were also meant to line many people's pockets. The novel's Senator Dilworthy supports various liberal causes and "family values," i.e. Sunday school education, but is also thoroughly corrupt.

_The Gilded Age_ is meant to be a morality tale where everyone receives his just deserts: the evil or those just plain greedy are punished, including a vengence seeking young woman deeply wronged by her married lover, and the good and the conscientious are rewarded. While the book occasionally gets bogged down in the scandalous details of this young woman's love life, _The Gilded Age_ is often an interesting, lively and educational glance into the manners of 1870s America.

A Tale of Today.......2001-07-17

The literary criticism you can get from the Oxford edition (check your local library); the commentary is thorough (which parts did Twain write? which parts Warner?) and informative. My reasons for recommending this book have nothing to do with its literary value (spotty) and everything to do with its subtitle. Every now and then an old book teaches us that much of what we take to be modern and sophisticated is truly old hat. One of the best descriptions of the Cold War was written by Thucydides, and one of the best depictions of the go go dot.com economy was written by Twain. Substitute web sites for depots and bandwidth for rails and the conversations in this book could have been overhead on cel phones in San Jose. IPO's and bubbles are not twenty-first century innovations: as Twain shows us,it may be possible to get rich from hard work, but it's more tempting to get rich by looting the pockets of the uninformed. Senator Dilworthy's dedication to pork evokes Byrd, and we learn lecherous behavior in Congress didn't start with Condit. An entertaining validation of Ecclesiates: there truly is nothing new under the sun.

Life on the Mississippi (Bantam Classics)

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Twain's "before and after" account of his quarter-century on the Old Muddy
Inspiring Narrative of Life on the River
Mark Twain at his best!
One of Twainýs Greatest!
Twain's Mississippi River Recollections..........

Life on the Mississippi (Bantam Classics)
Mark Twain
Manufacturer: Bantam Classics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0553213490
Release Date: 1983-10-01

Book Description

Fashioned from the same experiences that would inspire the masterpiece Huckleberry Finn, Life on the Mississippi is Mark Twain’s most brilliant and most personal nonfiction work. It is at once an affectionate evocation of the vital river life in the steamboat era and a melancholy reminiscence of its passing after the Civil War, a priceless collection of humorous anecdotes and folktales, and a unique glimpse into Twain’s life before he began to write.

Written in a prose style that has been hailed as among the greatest in English literature, Life on the Mississippi established Twain as not only the most popular humorist of his time but also America’s most profound chronicler of the human comedy.

Customer Reviews:

Twain's "before and after" account of his quarter-century on the Old Muddy.......2006-05-27

Twain's account of his years on the Mississippi is part travel book, part memoir, and part historical work, with a few sketches, stories, and tall tales tossed in for good measure. There is even an outtake from the not-yet-published "Huckleberry Finn," along with extensive excerpts from historical and contemporary accounts by other authors. This smorgasbord of material makes for an uneven book, but much of it shows Mark Twain at his humorous and humanistic best.

The kernel of the volume (and its best, most cohesive section) is in chapters 4 through 17; this material appeared in the Atlantic magazine in 1875 and recalls his early life as a crew member on steamboats in the early 1850s. His adventures as a young man are fraught with danger, full of comedy, populated by a number of ornery, mischievous, and reckless characters, and occasionally embellished (although Twain is a bit obvious when he's fobbing off a yarn). As Twain later wrote in "Puddn'head Wilson, "if there was anything better in this world than steamboating, it was the glory to be got by telling about it."

After he published the series in the Atlantic, Twain added another 46 chapters; much of it an account of his homecoming (incognito--or so he'd hoped) to the Mississippi River in 1882, when the steamboat had been rendered obsolete by the railroad. Many of these descriptions are unusually (for Twain) melancholy; he remarks upon the relatively emptiness of the river traffic and notes the transformations to the river and its banks that had made steamboat travel safer but less adventurous. His new journey provides opportunities to relate a number of stories--some allegedly told to him on the river and a few unpublished tales that he deemed relevant and worthy of inclusion.

The material from other sources, unfortunately, tends to bog things down--and there are about 10,000 words of it commingled in the text and included as appendices. Twain gathered newspaper articles and historical documents; he also included travel writing from earlier visitors, primarily Europeans distracted by how Americans and their homes were horribly uncouth and dirty. (You almost get the feeling that Twain would have smacked "the once renowned and vigorously hated" Frances Trollope upside the head if he'd had the chance; she provides Twain with the most interesting, if snooty, descriptions of traveling along the Mississippi early in the century.)

The material Twain wrote, however, more than compensates for the dryness of the extraneous stuff. As always, he is quotable, witty, amusing, and provocative. In spite of its excesses, nobody has done the Mississippi better.

Inspiring Narrative of Life on the River.......2005-12-24

Mark Twain (1835-1910) grew up along the banks of the Mississippi River, and he captures the feel of the mighty river during the steamboat era in this superb narrative and memoir. I particularly liked the earlier chapters, as Twain describes his youthful tutelage as an aspiring steamboat pilot in the years before the Civil War. Readers see what it was like guiding a steamboat over a river full of dangerous snags and sandbars - in clear daylight, through thick fog, and on moonless nights. The author then jumps ahead to his middle age - describing life along the river and in the South after the Civil War, and including politics, epidemics, and the supplanting of steamboats by railroads. The book's second half lacks a bit of the magic found earlier, but remains eminently readable and informative. This is a remarkable narrative by a great writer.

Mark Twain at his best!.......2005-04-05

I've been reading a lot of classic literature recently, and I also recently saw the Mississippi River for the first time...so this book seemed liked the perfect one for me to read right now.
This is a "non-fictional" book by Mark Twain. (I guess that means based on some truth but embelished in various ways?) In it he recalls the years he spent during his youth as a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River. Then he suddenly jumps forward many years in the book to when he is an older man. As an older man, he decides to go back and travel on the Mississippi River again. He finds the river much changed. The course of time (the Civil War has come and gone, the expansion of the railroad, and the forces of nature) have greatly changed life on the river. The once thriving steamboat trade has almost disapeared.
Besides his personal recollections, he also includes other interesting stories,history,folklore, talltales, and such. It is written in typical Mark Twain style - his dry sense of humor will bring a smile to your face. I really enjoyed this book.

One of Twainýs Greatest!.......2003-04-15

This book--at times disjointed, rambling, self-referential, and irreverent--is decades ahead of its time. It's an interdisciplinarian's dream as Twain takes on economics, geography, politics, ancient and contemporary history, and folklore with equal ease. Mostly though, one appreciates his knack for exaggeration, the tall tale, and the outright lie. It's a triumph of tone, as he lets you in on his wild wit, his keen observation, and his penchant for bending the truth without losing his credibility as a guide.

The book's structure is also modern: He recounts his days as a paddlewheel steam boat "cub," piloting the hundreds of miles of the Mississippi before the Civil War, then, in Part 2, returns to retrace his paddleboat route. Although a few of his many digressions don't work (they sometimes sound formulaic or too detailed) most of the narrative is extremely entertaining. Twain seems caught between admiration and disdain for the "modern" age-but he also rejects over-sentimentality over the past. He writes with beauty and cynicism, verve and humor. Very highly recommended!

Twain's Mississippi River Recollections.................2003-04-03

In Life on the Mississippi, Twain recounts his river experiences from boyhood to riverboat captain and beyond. Encompassing the years surrounding the Civil War, this book is an excellent source of 19th-century Americana as well as an anthology of the mighty river itself. Replete with rascally rivermen, riparian hazards, deluge, catastrophe, and charm, Life on the Mississippi is another of Twain's stellar literary achievements.

Wit and wisdom are expected from Twain and this book does not disappoint. It is equally valuable for it's period descriptions of the larger river cities (New Orleans, St. Louis, St. Paul), as well as the small town people and places ranging the length of America's imposing central watershed.

The advent of railroads signalled the end of the Mississipi's grand age of riverboat traffic, but, never fear, Life on the Mississippi brings it back for the reader as only Samuel Clemens can. Highly recommended.

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