
Autobiography of Mark Twain, Volume 1
The Complete and Authoritative Edition
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Narrated by:
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Grover Gardner
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By:
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Mark Twain
“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 The strict instruction that many of these texts remain unpublished for 100 years meant that when they came out, he would be “dead, and unaware, and indifferent” and that he was therefore free to speak his “whole frank mind”.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, here, for the first time, is Mark Twain’s uncensored autobiography, in its entirety, exactly as he left it. This major literary event offers 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.
Edited by Harriet Elinor Smith and other editors of the Mark Twain Project.
Mark Twain (1835 - 1910) was born Samuel L. Clemens in the town of Florida, Missouri. One of the most popular and influential authors our nation has ever produced, his keen wit and incisive satire earned him praise from both critics and peers. He has been called not only the greatest humorist of his age but the father of American literature.
©2010 2001 by the Mark Twain Foundation. All Rights Reserved. Transcription, reconstruction, and creation of the texts, introduction, notes, and appendixes copyright 2010 by the Regents of the University of California (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...




















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Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
Mark Twain never could write an autobiography. As he says, he writes about what interests him--and it obviously is not his own life. Comments about others come easy to Twain but the reader has to dig to get a view of Twain's life. The sections from his daughter Susie, who died young, do give some continuity to this scholarly book. Mainly, it is incidents, thoughts, anecdotes and opinions that Twain puts down in any order and in any way he wants. Luckily, even his random thoughts are interesting. Don't come to this expecting to understand Twain's life. It is more a slice of life seen from Twain's twinkling eyes.What was most disappointing about Mark Twain???s story?
The most disappointing part is that I came away not having a real sense of his life.Have you listened to any of Grover Gardner???s other performances before? How does this one compare?
The narrator was excellent.Only if you like research
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Poor Sam...
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WHAT IS WRITTEN BY HIM ROCKS THE REST SO SO
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I treat these autobiographies as spending time in Twain’s company, slowly going through them (and so perhaps once I’ve finally completed them all, my perspective may shift). Gardner’s voice suits, in my mind at least, the writer of these words, the face on the cover.
This first book is probably not for the casual Twain reader, and isn’t a page-turner to be thrown in among some of his best works, but if you like the voice that accompanies you throughout his other books, this is a joyful way to spend time listening to a masterful performance that captures the very essence of the words on the page.
Grover Gardner IS Mark Twain
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Excited for Volume 2 Release
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Wonderful World of Mark Twain
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This literature is comtaminated
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Loved it.
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Grover Gardner reading a Mark Twain biography!
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Good story, good reader.
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