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About the BookAbout the Author

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) tells us the story of Huckleberry Finn, known to his friends as Huck, whom we first meet in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. After being adopted by Widow Douglas, Huck tries very hard to lead a civilised life, but has to contend with his brutal father. Fed up with his father’s cruelty he runs away. Soon he meets up with old Jim, a runaway slave. They decide to raft down the Mississippi River and they have the wildest adventures on the way. The brilliant description of the Mississippi is from Twain’s own experiences as a steam-boat pilot. The sensitive portrayal of Huck and Jim, the hilarious crudity of the duke and the king and the staging of the ‘Nonesuch’ play, are but a few elements that make it one of the world’s greatest books.

Mark Twain, one of America’s best known writers is the pen-name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835-1910). He was born and grew up in Missouri. His father died when he was twelve years old and young. Samuel left home to earn a living. His name is taken from a river pilot’s cry ‘a mark or twain’, meaning that the water was two fathoms deep.