The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer + Huck Finn By Mark Twain

(Used, paperbacks, price per book)
 
 
The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer:
 
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer revolves around the youthful adventures of the novel's schoolboy protagonist, Thomas Sawyer, whose reputation precedes him for causing mischief and strife. Tom lives with his Aunt Polly, half-brother Sid, and cousin Mary in the quaint town of St. Petersburg, just off the shore of the Mississippi River. St. Petersburg is described as a typical small-town atmosphere where the Christian faith is predominant, the social network is close-knit, and familiarity resides.
 
Unlike his brother Sid, Tom receives "lickings" from his Aunt Polly; ever the mischief-maker, would rather play hooky than attend school and often sneaks out his bedroom window at night to adventure with his friend, Huckleberry Finn ­ the town's social outcast. Tom, despite his dread of schooling, is extremely clever and would normally get away with his pranks if Sid were not such a "tattle-tale."
 
 
The Adventures Of Huck Finn:
 
First published in 1884, Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a masterpiece of world literature. Narrated by Huck himself in his artless vernacular, it tells of his voyage down the Mississippi with a runaway slave named Jim. As the two journey downstream on a raft, Huck's vivid descriptions capture the sights, smells, sounds, and rhythms of life on the great river. As they encounter traveling actors, con men, lynch mobs, thieves, and Southern gentility, his shrewd comments reveal the dark side of human nature. By the end of the story, Huck has learned about the dignity and worth of human life-and Twain has exposed the moral blindness of the "respectable" slave-holding society in which he lives. Huckleberry Finn was Twain's greatest creation. Garrison Keillor approaches it with the respect and affection it deserves. "This is an abridgement of Mark Twain's book, keeping the parts I loved as a boy-Huck's story, the big river at night, the boasting of the raftsmen, the Duke and the Dauphin, the lynching, the feud-and lopping off the last third of the book, where Tom Sawyer comes in and makes a big production of freeing Jim. I had Huck free him instead. If you enjoy the reading, I am sure Mr. Twain will forgive me." -Garrison Keillor