Attorneys of Mississippi

Mark Twain: Life on the Mississippi (Library of America Paperback Classics)

Description

“Mark Twain was the first truly American writer, and all of us since are his heirs.”
--William Faulkner

A brilliant amalgam of remembrance and reportage, by turns satiric, celebratory, nostalgic, and melancholy, Life on the Mississippi evokes the great river that Mark Twain knew as a boy and young man and the one he revisited as a mature and successful author. Written between the publication of his two greatest novels, Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, TwainÂ’s rich portrait of the Mississippi marks a distinctive transition in the life of the river and the nation, from the boom years preceding the Civil War to the sober times that followed it.

Library of America Paperback Classics feature authoritative texts drawn from the acclaimed Library of America series and introduced by todayÂ’s most distinguished scholars and writers. Each book features a detailed chronology of the authorÂ’s life and career, and essay on the choice of the text, and notes.

The contents of this Paperback Classic are drawn from Mark Twain: Mississippi Writings, volume number 5 in the Library of America series. It is joined in the series by six companion volumes, gathering the collected works of Mark Twain.

Reviews

Rating: 4 / 5
Date: 2010-07-24
Summary: "Nice pleasure trip"

How is it a book written 120 years ago can still be so funny? He's just that good. It's true, some pieces of this are dated and, frankly, the facts regarding populations and cargo tonnage and numbers of schools in various towns is not very interesting, but there is only so much of that to put up with. Most of the rest is just pure fun to read. Some of it, laugh-out-loud fun to read. And it comes down not so much to the stories themselves but how Twain tells them with such great wit and perfect turn of phrase. If you like Twain, this is a must.

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Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2010-06-25
Summary: "An Audience with Mark Twain"


Mark Twain's-how to describe it?-reminiscences cum travelogue takes you on an expansive tour of the Mississippi river.Twain reveals where he got his nom de plume,tells of his time as a steamboat pilot and compares the pre civil war Mississippi to the progressive America of 1882.
In between acts he gives us a preview chapter of his upcoming novel 'Huckleberry Fynn' (though I cant for the life of me recall it in the book, though its a long while since I read it),a few tall tales,statistics of the river and its Towns and would have us believe that his childhood hero was a carpenter who confessed to being a serial killer!
I love Mark Twain. As it says in the introduction, this is a great 'hodgepodge' of a book,being statistical journelese one moment,then pure Twain the next,and its this pure Twain that keeps you on board reading even the appendices at the end!
Its obvious Twain couldn't stand the twee 'Merry England' novels of Sir Walter Scott,which no doubt he deplored as a boy,but I think he's dragging us into one of his famous exagerations when he blames Scott, not only for the outdated chivelry nonsense that plagued the Southern sensibilities of his day,but also for being the fundamental cause of the civil war!! As I say, pure Twain!
I guess if we went back to the days of 'sexist' literature-'Boy's' books and 'Girl's' books-'Life on...' would be a boys book,but it is also a fascinating piece of historical reading; Twain looking back on a bygone era whilst we today read his 130 year old account of things.
And when looking back on historical times,who better to read than someone who was there? Who better to read than Mark Twain?

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Rating: 5 / 5
Date: 2010-04-08
Summary: "Essential American Literature"

Mark Twain is synonymous worldwide with the Mississippi River, mainly because of the Tom Sawyer/Huck Finn stories. However, Life on the Mississippi is just as important and, in a testament to Twain's greatness, nearly as readable despite being non-fiction. It details his history with the river and gives an overview of the river itself; this may sound boring, and almost certainly would be with anyone else, but I long ago decided that even Twain's laundry list would be worth reading, and this certainly is. The magic he seemed to bring to everything is in full force; one would be very hard-pressed to find another non-fiction book that is so entertaining, besides Twain's others of course, but it is also awesomely informative. In addition, Life is historically notable as the first book written on a typewriter, not Huck as is commonly thought; however, it made Twain able to finish Huck, which he had struggled with for some years and set aside. Huck fans and scholars will want to read Life for this alone, but it is more than worthy in itself.

Twain starts by giving some basic facts and history; this is the least interesting part but only lasts a few pages, and I urge anyone bored by it to continue. Much of the information is of course dated but remains historically valuable as a portrait of the river as it then stood. Far more interesting is Twain's unforgettable rundown of his years as a riverboat pilot - a central life experience that led to much of his writing. We get a fascinating glimpse of this long-vanquished trade, which was all but unthinkable even when Life was published. It is important to recall that Twain was a pilot before such boats had steam or even lights at night. He details piloting's extraordinary difficulties with engrossing detail and typical self-deprecating humor. We learn much along the way about the riverboat lifestyle, the river itself, and riverside towns. Anyone curious about what it was like to live in this era and/or how its inhabitants thought and acted will find a wealth of information; we learn as much here as in any history book, and it is of course infinitely better written. Life covers a crucial American history era and is an important primary source even for those not interested in Twain and certainly essential for anyone who is, as it gives substantial background about a crucial part of his life. The book is indeed in part a bildungsroman; Twain had always loved the river and began pilot training soon after first leaving home. He structures the narrative so that it reads much like a story, and we see him grow from naïveté and ignorance to an admirable experience and wisdom.

Twain then details a trip he made on the river many years later, noting what changed and what stayed the same. There is significant autobiographical material here also, but the crux is descriptive. Twain describes the river's whole length and everything having to do with it as he goes, making it all utterly absorbing. As always, there are many eminently readable tangents. Several are autobiographical - reminisces as well as then recent events. Particularly interesting is Twain's profoundly touching visit to his hometown after a long absence. However, a good part of Life has nothing to do with the river directly but is at least as engrossing as what does. Twain's many asides are full of wit and insight; few have ever probed so deeply into life and humanity, and we are lucky to have his wisdom, much of which is hilarious. Especially engaging are observations on North/South differences, notably including the Civil War. Twain's sociopolitical criticism is also as brilliant as ever, taking on everything from architecture to Walter Raleigh to speech. Finally, Life would be valuable even if lacking all this because it passes on an invaluable treasure of American folklore.

Life is quite simply required reading for anyone even remotely interested in American literature; it is essential Twain, which makes it simply essential.