The Best Short Works of Mark Twain

by Mark Twain

Overview

A collection of short works by one of America's most revered, iconoclastic, and enduring voices—Mark Twain.

For deft plot, riotous inventiveness, unforgettable characters, and language that brilliantly captures the lively rhythms of American speech, no American writer comes close to Mark Twain. This sparkling anthology covers the entire span of Twain's inimitable yarn-spinning, from his early broad comedy to the biting satire of his later years. Surging with Twain's ebullient wit and penetrating insight into the follies of human nature, this volume is a vibrant summation of the career of—in the words of H.L. Mencken—"the father of our national literature."

This edition includes:
-A concise introduction that gives readers important background information
-A chronology of the author's life and work
-A timeline of significant events that provides the book's historical context
-An outline of key themes and plot points to help readers form their own interpretations
-Detailed explanatory notes
-Critical analysis, including contemporary and modern perspectives on the work
-Discussion questions to promote lively classroom and book group interaction
-A list of recommended related books and films to broaden the reader's experience

Enriched Classics offer readers affordable editions of great works of literature enhanced by helpful notes and insightful commentary. The scholarship provided in Enriched Classics enables readers to appreciate, understand, and enjoy the world's finest books to their full potential.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780743487795
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster
Publication date:	11/01/2004
Series:	Enriched Classics
Edition description:	Enriched Classic
Pages:	832
Product dimensions:	4.19(w) x 6.75(h) x 2.40(d)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Mark Twain, born Samuel Langhorne Clemens in 1835, left school at age 12. His career encompassed such varied occupations as printer, Mississippi riverboat pilot, journalist, travel writer, and publisher, which furnished him with a wide knowledge of humanity and the perfect grasp of local customs and speech manifested in his writing. It wasn't until The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885), that he was recognized by the literary establishment as one of the greatest writers America would ever produce.

Toward the end of his life, plagued by personal tragedy and financial failure, Twain grew more and more cynical and pessimistic. Though his fame continued to widen—Yale and Oxford awarded him honorary degrees—he spent his last years in gloom and desperation, but he lives on in American letters as "the Lincoln of our literature."

Date of Birth:

November 30, 1835

Date of Death:

April 21, 1910

Place of Birth:

Florida, Missouri

Place of Death:

Redding, Connecticut