Autobiography of Mark Twain: The Complete and Authoritative Edition

Twain, Mark

ISBN 10 : 1441778438 ISBN 13 : 9781441778437

Editeur : Blackstone Pub, 2010

Synopsis

Book by Twain Mark

A propos du livre

Revue de presse

"Promises a no-holds barred perspective on Twain's life, and will be rich with rambunctious, uncompromising opinions." --Herald Scotland

Stored under lock and key since his death 100 years ago, the first volume of Mark Twain's autobiography will be published later this year by the University of California Press. The author had specified a century's wait, so that he might be properly "dead, and unaware, and indifferent". In the meantime, the summer issue of Granta magazine (out next week) will be running an exclusive extract, in which Twain recalls childhood summers on his uncle's farm. The highlight for literary buffs will be the revelation that a middle-aged slave, "Uncle Dan'l", was the inspiration for Jim in Huckleberry Finn. For others, it is likely to be his discourse on the joys of tobacco for seven-year-old boys. "A strapping girl of 15, in the customary sunbonnet and calico dress, asked me if I 'used tobacco' meaning did I chew it. I said, no. It roused her scorn. She reported me to all the crowd and said, 'Here is a boy seven years old who can't chew tobacco.' By the looks and comments which this produced, I realised I was a degraded object; I was cruelly ashamed of myself. I determined to reform. But I only made myself sick; I was not able to learn to chew tobacco. I learned to smoke fairly well, but that did not conciliate anybody, and I remained a poor thing, and characterless." Twain carried on smoking for 67 years, until his death in 1910. --John Crace, The Guardian

Stored under lock and key since his death 100 years ago, the first volume of Mark Twain's autobiography will be published later this year by the University of California Press. The author had specified a century's wait, so that he might be properly "dead, and unaware, and indifferent". In the meantime, the summer issue of Granta magazine (out next week) will be running an exclusive extract, in which Twain recalls childhood summers on his uncle's farm. The highlight for literary buffs will be the revelation that a middle-aged slave, "Uncle Dan'l", was the inspiration for Jim in Huckleberry Finn. For others, it is likely to be his discourse on the joys of tobacco for seven-year-old boys. "A strapping girl of 15, in the customary sunbonnet and calico dress, asked me if I 'used tobacco' meaning did I chew it. I said, no. It roused her scorn. She reported me to all the crowd and said, 'Here is a boy seven years old who can't chew tobacco.' By the looks and comments which this produced, I realised I was a degraded object; I was cruelly ashamed of myself. I determined to reform. But I only made myself sick; I was not able to learn to chew tobacco. I learned to smoke fairly well, but that did not conciliate anybody, and I remained a poor thing, and characterless." Twain carried on smoking for 67 years, until his death in 1910. --John Crace, The Guardian

Présentation de l'éditeur

'I've struck it!' Mark Twain wrote in a 1904 letter to a friend. 'And I will give it away - to you. You will never know how much enjoyment you have lost until you get to dictating your autobiography.' Thus, after dozens of false starts and hundreds of pages, Twain embarked on his 'Final (and Right) Plan' for telling the story of his life. His innovative notion - to 'talk only about the thing which interests you for the moment' - meant that his thoughts could range freely. The strict instruction that many of these texts remain unpublished for 100 years meant that when they came out, he would be 'dead, and unaware, and indifferent,' and that he was therefore free to speak his 'whole frank mind.' The year 2010 marks the 100th anniversary of Twain's death. In celebration of this important milestone and in honor of the cherished tradition of publishing Mark Twain's works, "UC Press" is proud to offer for the first time Mark Twain's uncensored autobiography in its entirety and exactly as he left it. This major literary event brings to readers, admirers, and scholars the first of three volumes and presents Mark Twain's authentic and unsuppressed voice, brimming with humor, ideas, and opinions, and speaking clearly from the grave as he intended.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Blackstone Pub
• Date d'édition: 2010
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 1441778438
• ISBN 13: 9781441778437
• Reliure: CD
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible