What do you think?
Rate this book
The Unabridged Mark Twain, Vol. 1
Twenty-seven selections are included in a collection of novels and short stories reset from first editions approved by the author and representing the best of Mark Twain
1292 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1976
35 people are currently reading
1012 people want to read
About the author
Mark Twain
8,874 books18.7k followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." His novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), with the latter often called the "Great American Novel." Twain also wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) and Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894), and co-wrote The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873) with Charles Dudley Warner.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." His novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), with the latter often called the "Great American Novel." Twain also wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) and Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894), and co-wrote The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873) with Charles Dudley Warner.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
March 14, 2024
As the old saying says: You can't beat the classics!
Seriously, this is worth checking out for any longtime reader. If all you know of Mark Twain is what you've seen in celluloid adaptations or shows like Wishbone...you don't truly know the man!
Seriously, this is worth checking out for any longtime reader. If all you know of Mark Twain is what you've seen in celluloid adaptations or shows like Wishbone...you don't truly know the man!
September 10, 2020
VOLUME 1 of 2. Contains Twain's 5 most famous full-length books (Huck, Tom, Pauper, Connecticut Yankee and Innocents Abroad) plus many of my favorite Twain shorts. At 1400 pages, it is one of the thickest paperbacks I've ever handled, nearly as thick as it is wide.
CONTENTS
The weather in this book --
Opening remarks / Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. --
A short note from the editor --
"After" Jenkins --
The celebrated jumping frog of Calaveras County --
The innocents abroad --
The undertaker's chat --
The danger of lying in bed --
Lionizing murderers --
A true story repeated word for word as I heard it --
An encounter with an interviewer --
About barbers --
The facts concerning recent carnival of crime in Connecticut --
The adventures of Tom Sawyer --
The journals of Germany --
The prince and the pauper --
On the decay of the art of lying --
The adventures of Huckleberry Finn --
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's court --
The private history of a campaign that failed --
The £1,000,000 bank note --
Playing courier --
Fenimore Cooper's literary offenses --
The man that corrupted Hadleyburg.
CONTENTS
The weather in this book --
Opening remarks / Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. --
A short note from the editor --
"After" Jenkins --
The celebrated jumping frog of Calaveras County --
The innocents abroad --
The undertaker's chat --
The danger of lying in bed --
Lionizing murderers --
A true story repeated word for word as I heard it --
An encounter with an interviewer --
About barbers --
The facts concerning recent carnival of crime in Connecticut --
The adventures of Tom Sawyer --
The journals of Germany --
The prince and the pauper --
On the decay of the art of lying --
The adventures of Huckleberry Finn --
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's court --
The private history of a campaign that failed --
The £1,000,000 bank note --
Playing courier --
Fenimore Cooper's literary offenses --
The man that corrupted Hadleyburg.
August 16, 2007
Heavy, with breakable spine.
September 1, 2014
I can't say that I enjoy everything that Twain wrote, but I think it is important he is read today more than ever. Not only is his work a slice of Americana, it is a part of American History. We can learn a lot about where we're at presently through his humorous, insightful eye. A collection like this one gives you the opportunity to find something you'll enjoy.
September 16, 2012
Really good collection.
August 18, 2013
Even better than expected.
December 21, 2014
Read this years ago. You can never go wrong with Twain.
February 17, 2025
Five selections from 'The Unabridged... have already been reviewed on my Goodreads page: 'The Innocents Abroad', 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer', 'The Prince and the Pauper', 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,' and 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court.' This note is in relation to the remainder of the entries, which number 16.
This is not technically "a complete works of Twain," as he wrote other stories not included in this book.
What I most like about Samuel Clemens' writing is his often hilarious word choice, of which the examples are simply endless. Next, his crazy plots: "The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg" probably exemplifies this as well as any, in which he pokes fun at self-regarded high-minded folk who in the end turn out to be as base as the rest of us.
The remaining selections are mixed, as well as uneven in their readability. But I think this is the result of Clemens' experimental approach to his craft.
According to Kurt Vonnegut's introduction, Earnest Hemingway regarded 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' the root of all subsequent American literature. That's saying something.
I'll be seeking out any remaining works of Clemens because they are usually a good read, and one can't have too many laughs in life.
This is not technically "a complete works of Twain," as he wrote other stories not included in this book.
What I most like about Samuel Clemens' writing is his often hilarious word choice, of which the examples are simply endless. Next, his crazy plots: "The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg" probably exemplifies this as well as any, in which he pokes fun at self-regarded high-minded folk who in the end turn out to be as base as the rest of us.
The remaining selections are mixed, as well as uneven in their readability. But I think this is the result of Clemens' experimental approach to his craft.
According to Kurt Vonnegut's introduction, Earnest Hemingway regarded 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' the root of all subsequent American literature. That's saying something.
I'll be seeking out any remaining works of Clemens because they are usually a good read, and one can't have too many laughs in life.
March 28, 2024
As far as thick tombs go, this one is among the thickest, with 1286 possible paper cuts and wrist strain nearly guaranteed! When I started this volume, which contains 5 novels and dozens of short stories, all printed in small type, I didn't need reading glasses, but now I do. The book itself, although I didn't weigh it, is heavier than it looks (and it looks heavy, make no mistake). I nearly concussed myself several times during the thirteen months it took me to read this anthology, simply because I temporarily stored it on a high perch and it seemed to leap at me of its own accord. Perhaps it would be wise of the book seller to include a helmet and safety glasses, to avoid any possible liability claims. Over the course of the time it took me to tackle this epistle of literary largess, the binding likewise failed to escape injury, and I predict at some point it will part ways with this treatise of learned disquisition, giving the stout narratives no protective exoskeleton in which to look imposing in. The horrifying possibility that there is a volume 2 out there sends shivers along my spine, and phantom pains in my wrists.
January 13, 2024
What can I add that countless other readers, educators and authors haven't? Twain was genius of letters and social commentary. I'd be shocked if you haven't read some of these stories already but having them all collected and immersing oneself into the world of the old south and a youthful America has much entertainment and philosophical value.
July 2, 2021
Well, I'm not going to pretend to review - after all its MARK TWAIN ...... what is there left to say? If your knowledge of Mark Twain begins and ends with 'Tom Sawyer' and 'Huckleberry Finn' there is SO much more. You really need to read this book.
November 18, 2018
Not only is it a killer collection, but the Vonnegut introduction really makes it.
January 18, 2020
Many good stories, a few so so
November 12, 2024
While the language may offend some, I believe Twain was deliberately mocking the injustice of his time. And the stories are wonderfully entertaining.
Want to read
June 2, 2025Cutting is for The Celebrated Jumping Frog
of Calaveras County
By Mark Twain
of Calaveras County
By Mark Twain
October 16, 2024
On Mark Twain: Only the Half of It!
"It was a ripping distance from one end of that man's head to t'other."
In sharing this quote of the Undertaker about his corpse, I feel as though I were digging through Twain's entire oeuvre, exhuming the whole of the man's bones to take the measure of his genius. It was indeed a ripping distance from one end of his work to the other. And, this is not even the half of the library that is Mark Twain's creation.
As I mentioned in my review of The Gilded Age, which was cowritten by Charles Warner and Mark Twain, I ordered this two volume hardback set of Twain's Unabridged works hoping that first novel was included. But, it is not in either volume. So I ordered that separately, and finished The Gilded Age in April, since it wasn't included here. I started this in May, so it has taken some two months to read. Volume One contains not only five full-length novels and travelogues, but numerous short stories and humorous sketches, a witty review of James Fenimore Cooper's books, and Opening Remarks, by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. It also gives publication info before each work in the volume. I am listing below the complete Table of Contents for this book.
This is an astounding collection of Twain's work, and both of the two volumes are huge to hold. You will need a reading table, or desk to handle this collection... certainly not a portable work. But, the binding is nice and it should last through many readings and years on the shelf. Of course, I'll be the first to confess that I am impressed by the cover and the heft of this tome. It looks great, and even has the gilt page edges. The print is normal sized as well, so the almost 1300 pages per volume were put to good use.
It would be difficult for me to choose between Twain's novels, because I have loved them all since early childhood. The Connecticut Yankee, The Prince and the Pauper, Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn all peopled my imagination, written indelibly on my heart. Pudd'nhead Wilson is in the next volume, but I already met him in a recent collection of sixteen short stories. Twain's intuitive recognition of the nature of humans of all races is present in most of his work, but Pudd'nhead Wilson is possibly the best on that front. As this collection shows, though, this great American wrote across several genres. And, who can but love all his characters?! Even the great Ernest Hemingway and Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. loved Twain's characters.
Whether he is writing about a recherche donkey and a rebel gang in the Civil War, or what would be today a $25,000 Grand Tour of Europe, or disobedient boys and fussing Aunts; Twain will have your attention with the scenes and the sinners and saints of his boyhood in Nineteenth Century America. Of course, Tom and Huck were written from life. Huck was modeled from a boy the author knew growing up, and Tom was a composite of four boys, who was named after a fireman Clemens met in San Francisco. I planned to take a break before digging into volume 2, but I don't imagine I would be able to wait to read all that is to come. But, remember that word Unabridged only stretches so far in the book industry. There are more works by Twain that are not included here. But, they are out there to be had.
TOC of this Volume 1:
The Weather in This Book
Opening Remarks, by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
A Short Note From the Editor
"After" Jenkins
The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County
The Innocents Abroad
The Undertaker's Chat
The Danger of Lying in Bed
Lionizing Murderers
A True Story Repeated Word for Word as I Heard It
An Encounter with an Interviewer
About Barbers
The Facts Concerning the Recent Carnival of Crime in Connecticut
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The Journals of Germany
The Prince and the Pauper
On the Decay of the Art of Lying
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
The Private History of a Campaign That Failed
The 41,000,000 Bank Note
Playing Courier
Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses
The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg
"It was a ripping distance from one end of that man's head to t'other."
In sharing this quote of the Undertaker about his corpse, I feel as though I were digging through Twain's entire oeuvre, exhuming the whole of the man's bones to take the measure of his genius. It was indeed a ripping distance from one end of his work to the other. And, this is not even the half of the library that is Mark Twain's creation.
As I mentioned in my review of The Gilded Age, which was cowritten by Charles Warner and Mark Twain, I ordered this two volume hardback set of Twain's Unabridged works hoping that first novel was included. But, it is not in either volume. So I ordered that separately, and finished The Gilded Age in April, since it wasn't included here. I started this in May, so it has taken some two months to read. Volume One contains not only five full-length novels and travelogues, but numerous short stories and humorous sketches, a witty review of James Fenimore Cooper's books, and Opening Remarks, by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. It also gives publication info before each work in the volume. I am listing below the complete Table of Contents for this book.
This is an astounding collection of Twain's work, and both of the two volumes are huge to hold. You will need a reading table, or desk to handle this collection... certainly not a portable work. But, the binding is nice and it should last through many readings and years on the shelf. Of course, I'll be the first to confess that I am impressed by the cover and the heft of this tome. It looks great, and even has the gilt page edges. The print is normal sized as well, so the almost 1300 pages per volume were put to good use.
It would be difficult for me to choose between Twain's novels, because I have loved them all since early childhood. The Connecticut Yankee, The Prince and the Pauper, Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn all peopled my imagination, written indelibly on my heart. Pudd'nhead Wilson is in the next volume, but I already met him in a recent collection of sixteen short stories. Twain's intuitive recognition of the nature of humans of all races is present in most of his work, but Pudd'nhead Wilson is possibly the best on that front. As this collection shows, though, this great American wrote across several genres. And, who can but love all his characters?! Even the great Ernest Hemingway and Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. loved Twain's characters.
Whether he is writing about a recherche donkey and a rebel gang in the Civil War, or what would be today a $25,000 Grand Tour of Europe, or disobedient boys and fussing Aunts; Twain will have your attention with the scenes and the sinners and saints of his boyhood in Nineteenth Century America. Of course, Tom and Huck were written from life. Huck was modeled from a boy the author knew growing up, and Tom was a composite of four boys, who was named after a fireman Clemens met in San Francisco. I planned to take a break before digging into volume 2, but I don't imagine I would be able to wait to read all that is to come. But, remember that word Unabridged only stretches so far in the book industry. There are more works by Twain that are not included here. But, they are out there to be had.
TOC of this Volume 1:
The Weather in This Book
Opening Remarks, by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
A Short Note From the Editor
"After" Jenkins
The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County
The Innocents Abroad
The Undertaker's Chat
The Danger of Lying in Bed
Lionizing Murderers
A True Story Repeated Word for Word as I Heard It
An Encounter with an Interviewer
About Barbers
The Facts Concerning the Recent Carnival of Crime in Connecticut
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
The Journals of Germany
The Prince and the Pauper
On the Decay of the Art of Lying
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
The Private History of a Campaign That Failed
The 41,000,000 Bank Note
Playing Courier
Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses
The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg
July 7, 2011
This is the book that got me started on Twain (not counting the obligatory "have tos" of Tom and Huckleberry).
I had forgotten about the old dead dude until one day in a college book store, this block of a book jumped out at me. The cover caricature was humorous. In the front matter was a short piece, "About the Weather in this Book." It was humorous. I glanced at the table of contents and then leafed through the 1,300 pages catching humorous phrases at about every pause. This was not the work of an old stodgy "classics" author in which class I had, as an elementary school student, placed him. This guy was funny!
Since then I've been fascinated by his ear, his mind, his heart, and his wicked way of setting up a chuckle. There are pages on which every sentence is a masterful work of art.
Many, many good stories, tales, and recollections are stuffed in here!
I had forgotten about the old dead dude until one day in a college book store, this block of a book jumped out at me. The cover caricature was humorous. In the front matter was a short piece, "About the Weather in this Book." It was humorous. I glanced at the table of contents and then leafed through the 1,300 pages catching humorous phrases at about every pause. This was not the work of an old stodgy "classics" author in which class I had, as an elementary school student, placed him. This guy was funny!
Since then I've been fascinated by his ear, his mind, his heart, and his wicked way of setting up a chuckle. There are pages on which every sentence is a masterful work of art.
Many, many good stories, tales, and recollections are stuffed in here!
June 29, 2011
EDLI 200 requirement: "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" Pages 437-585. Classics
Genre: Classic
Reading Level:Grade 5-8
The timeless story of Tom Sawyer and a broad range of characters in a small town along the Mississippi River during the early 19th century is full of humor, boyhood fantasy,racial injustice and mystery. Tom embodies the adventurous creativity of children before the dawn of television and video games. In classic from, he schemes endlessly to avoid both church and school. Tom is an all American adventurer engaged with the rich outdoor environment and the vast array of townspeople in his life.
Genre: Classic
Reading Level:Grade 5-8
The timeless story of Tom Sawyer and a broad range of characters in a small town along the Mississippi River during the early 19th century is full of humor, boyhood fantasy,racial injustice and mystery. Tom embodies the adventurous creativity of children before the dawn of television and video games. In classic from, he schemes endlessly to avoid both church and school. Tom is an all American adventurer engaged with the rich outdoor environment and the vast array of townspeople in his life.
May 25, 2016
3.5 stars
I can't give it more than that. the sheer size of it pulled muscles every time I lifted it and don't even get me started on how long it took me to finish. mind you, I have had this book for a number of years and it only broke last year, so I consider that a victory.
that being said, this is a good edition of his works. it is obvious why his writing has stood the so-called "test of time."
I can't give it more than that. the sheer size of it pulled muscles every time I lifted it and don't even get me started on how long it took me to finish. mind you, I have had this book for a number of years and it only broke last year, so I consider that a victory.
that being said, this is a good edition of his works. it is obvious why his writing has stood the so-called "test of time."
December 15, 2009
Some of his short unknown (at least to me) don't really interest us.
It's a real challenge to read aloud with all the dialect. But the dialect is so much part of the pieces.
Enjoyed the frog story (how many times have I read it ... well into the double digits.)
It's a real challenge to read aloud with all the dialect. But the dialect is so much part of the pieces.
Enjoyed the frog story (how many times have I read it ... well into the double digits.)
June 6, 2007
Mark Twain is great.
August 9, 2007
The perfect compilation.
February 16, 2013
this might take me a while...dude wrote a lot.
March 18, 2008
Absolutely loved all the stories. My favorite is "The Interview"- one I'd never read before...hysterically funny- classic, tongue-in-cheek Twain.
June 5, 2008
There is a review below mentioning "the interview", sooo funny. I love it. I haven't read the whole book but it is a great one to have around as it is full of great stories.
March 8, 2011
This is the correct book, altho the description says "2 pages", and it is actually 1,292 pages!
July 17, 2011
A collection of the writings of Mark Twain displaying his humor and satire. For the most part, he wrote about places that he had visited.
May 20, 2012
As a body of one writer's work it is truly amazing to see the sheer volume of good writing some peolpe are capable of.
May 23, 2024
Finished volume 2 on December 11, 2006.
July 1, 2012
My Mantra
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews