| Life on the Mississippi Contributor(s): Twain, Mark (Author) |
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ISBN: 1484004582 ISBN-13: 9781484004586 Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform OUR PRICE: $15.20 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: April 2013 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Biography & Autobiography | Adventurers & Explorers - Literary Criticism | American - General - Literary Collections | Ancient, Classical & Medieval |
| Dewey: 818.403 |
| Lexile Measure: 1090 |
| Physical Information: 0.82" H x 7.44" W x 9.69" (1.56 lbs) 398 pages |
| Themes: - Chronological Period - 19th Century - Cultural Region - Mississippi River Basin |
| Accelerated Reader Info |
| Quiz #: 10039 Reading Level: 9.1 Interest Level: Upper Grades Point Value: 24.0 |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: 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. Highly recommended |