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The Innocents Abroad is one of the most prominent and influential travel books ever written about Europe and the Holy Land. In it, the colli...
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Jun 09, 2008
Evil_Dead_Junkie
rated it: 
God you've got to love Twain.
A funny sacred cow roasting romp through Europe and The Middle East, taking on stereotypes, high society, and decorum with a shotgun blast to the face. However, this is young amused by humanities flaws Mark Twain, not embittered "Fuck the World." Mark Twain. So there's still plenty of room for real wonder and occasional awe.
Plus it has the best reaction to a Mummy you will ever see.
A funny sacred cow roasting romp through Europe and The Middle East, taking on stereotypes, high society, and decorum with a shotgun blast to the face. However, this is young amused by humanities flaws Mark Twain, not embittered "Fuck the World." Mark Twain. So there's still plenty of room for real wonder and occasional awe.
Plus it has the best reaction to a Mummy you will ever see.
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Aug 24, 2007
Mike
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When I lived in Madrid years ago I used to buy pistachios from an Iranian refugee in Retiro Park. I don't recall his name, but I decided to call him Stan. It drove him crazy, but I called him Stan anyway. Why did I call him Stan?
One word: Ferguson.
Ferguson is every tour guide that graces the pages of Mark Twain's The Innocents Abroad. The author and his cohort call their guides Ferguson, whether in Paris or in Athens. The name drives each Ferguson crazy, but they do More...
One word: Ferguson.
Ferguson is every tour guide that graces the pages of Mark Twain's The Innocents Abroad. The author and his cohort call their guides Ferguson, whether in Paris or in Athens. The name drives each Ferguson crazy, but they do More...
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Jan 14, 2011
Patrick
rated it: 
This novel is part stand-up comedy and part history lesson. Throughout this novel Twain is hysterically funny, irreverent, lampooning and blatantly racist--a classic American traveling abroad. This travel log touches upon almost every tourist spot in Europe, North Africa and the Holy Land. Twain covers many of the most important sites in Europe in a very thorough manner. The text would become tedious if not for the wit and clever turning of phrases throughout the novel. The humor does have
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Aug 06, 2011
Nicholas
rated it: 
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1740391.ht...
Apparently this was one of the books that cemented the young Mark Twain's reputation, an account of a cruise to the Mediterranean by a group of several dozen American tourists, taking in Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Constantinople, Russia's Black Sea coast, the Holy Land and Egypt. It's a work of poking fun at the Old World and also at the New, steeped in the inevitable prejudices of the day but with some decent lines.
Some of the sc More...
Apparently this was one of the books that cemented the young Mark Twain's reputation, an account of a cruise to the Mediterranean by a group of several dozen American tourists, taking in Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Constantinople, Russia's Black Sea coast, the Holy Land and Egypt. It's a work of poking fun at the Old World and also at the New, steeped in the inevitable prejudices of the day but with some decent lines.
Some of the sc More...
Aug 30, 2009
Jason
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This is an account of Mark Twain's several month voyage to Europe, Africa and the Middle East on the steamship Quaker City in 1867.
Twain blows through the trip as a full-bore American discovering that places outside the good ole USA by and large suck. He and his friends enjoy tormenting all of their tour guides by calling them all "Ferguson" and asking stupid questions, such as of the ancient painters, "Is he dead?" The tour guides never catch on. He compares L More...
Twain blows through the trip as a full-bore American discovering that places outside the good ole USA by and large suck. He and his friends enjoy tormenting all of their tour guides by calling them all "Ferguson" and asking stupid questions, such as of the ancient painters, "Is he dead?" The tour guides never catch on. He compares L More...
Feb 06, 2011
Dave
rated it:
“The Innocents Abroad, or The New Pilgrims’ Progress” is Twain’s second book, though he undoubtedly would have preferred it be his first book, given his destruction of the plates for “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County and Other Sketches”. Nevertheless, this is an early work, and yet it already shows Twain’s skill as a writer, and his development into one of the greatest writers of all time.
The Oxford Mark Twain series is a wonderful collection. Each book is a facsim More...
The Oxford Mark Twain series is a wonderful collection. Each book is a facsim More...
Nov 17, 2011
Alene
rated it:
Twain's report on his extended vacation through Europe and the Holy land. I loved it, definitely gave new perspective on some places I've been and taught me that apparently, the beauty of Lake Tahoe cannot be surpassed by any European lake : ) Guess I need to see Lake Tahoe since I never have.
Really I loved his humor about the possibility of all the holy places really being where the churches were built for them and the holy relics being authentic. For example, he jokes about ho More...
Really I loved his humor about the possibility of all the holy places really being where the churches were built for them and the holy relics being authentic. For example, he jokes about ho More...
Jan 24, 2012
John
rated it:
Twain’s The Innocents Abroad is a travel book, chronicling the escapades and adventures of the roughly 60 passengers on board the Quaker City. The “pilgrims” shuttled about the Mediterranean with side jaunts through France and the holy land. Twain, as we all are, was a man of his time. This means that he is as filled with the provincial prejudices of his day, but he seems to recognize he prejudices and is able to laugh at himself.
Some passages or gruesomely humorous, such as his a More...
Some passages or gruesomely humorous, such as his a More...
May 09, 2008
Mark Twain's characteristic wit make this an enjoyable read, but I am a bit frustrated with the lack of plot so far. Also, the narrator-character that Twain's constructed for himself can be a bit choppy at times, changing rapidly from sensitive observer to ignorant Yank. Nevertheless, Twain's criticisms of his fellow American travelers still ring embarrassingly true.
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Sep 21, 2008
Derek
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10 percent humorous versus 90 percent tedium. And that may even be a generous assessment.
The humor is actually laugh-out-loud humor - and I rarely LOL while reading - but the tedium... oh, the tedium! It became more and more of a trudge.
I may yet give this another try, as I really do *want* to read more Twain, but not in the foreseeable future.
The humor is actually laugh-out-loud humor - and I rarely LOL while reading - but the tedium... oh, the tedium! It became more and more of a trudge.
I may yet give this another try, as I really do *want* to read more Twain, but not in the foreseeable future.
Jun 28, 2011
Maggie
rated it:
This is one of those books which I think time has not been kind to. All of the information was interesting, the little stories were a mixture of merely amusing, hysterically funny, and over-the-top annoying, and then there were the chapters which were absolutely fabulous--so well written and beautiful that I begged for an entire book of that kind of writing.
Part of the problem here is that the world has become so politically correct that all the members of my book club agreed that More...
Part of the problem here is that the world has become so politically correct that all the members of my book club agreed that More...
Oct 26, 2009
Erin
rated it:
I didn't find this book as funny as I thought it would be, although Twain says many clever things and pokes plenty of fun at his group of Americans traveling the world. They certainly discover that the world is much more than what is described in history and guide books - more diverse, boring, dirty, beautiful, interesting, etc than they had previously thought.
Some of the things I enjoyed about this book:
the illustrations
the travelers call all their local guides Fergu More...
Some of the things I enjoyed about this book:
the illustrations
the travelers call all their local guides Fergu More...
Jun 30, 2011
Stephanie
rated it:
I recently watched the PBS program on Mark Twain, and decided to pick this up as one of the few of his works I haven't read. I love his humor, he could be so caustic and sarcastic and somehow endearing at the same time. I wish I had met him.
Reading this book took me back to a time of much international travel in my teens. I was a shy teenager, so I watched with horror as my family typefied the "Ugly American" stereotype he plays with here. He also captures that sense of More...
Reading this book took me back to a time of much international travel in my teens. I was a shy teenager, so I watched with horror as my family typefied the "Ugly American" stereotype he plays with here. He also captures that sense of More...
Jan 09, 2012
Lissa
rated it:
For Literature with Lunch -- I enjoyed the book more after I researched "subscription books" and understood that Twain was padding his book contents to make an extra thick book so that people who bought it on subscription would feel like they got their money's worth. I imagine that I would have enjoyed his lecture tours a great deal more than this text -- or an audio version. I kept trying to read this too quickly to get all of the jokes, which are worked into the turn of a phrase -- w
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Jul 30, 2011
Rob
rated it:
The Innocents Abroad seems to be regarded as Mark Twain's definitive travel book; but I liked both Roughing It and A Tramp Abroad better. This book is derived from a series of newspaper columns he wrote while abroad, and he didn't quite succeed at transforming them into a single, coherent narrative.
Twain does get in a few good digs at the "pilgrims" (devout Christians visiting the Holy Land), and his account of visiting the holiest places in Jerusalem is seething with barely More...
Twain does get in a few good digs at the "pilgrims" (devout Christians visiting the Holy Land), and his account of visiting the holiest places in Jerusalem is seething with barely More...
Dec 23, 2007
michael
rated it:
i'm not sure books like this are written anymore, and for good reason.
alternatively boring and brilliant, but always kind of tedious. and makes a good argument against people who think twain had "complex," "reedemable" views on race.
alternatively boring and brilliant, but always kind of tedious. and makes a good argument against people who think twain had "complex," "reedemable" views on race.
Aug 12, 2011
Bruce
rated it:
A great summer read, literate, funny, and far reaching. In 1867, Twain joined an unlikely group of tourists for the trip of a lifetime, a steamship cruise through the Mediterranean that took them to all the major capitals of Southern Europe and the Holy Land. But Twain was already Twain, and in reporting on the trip, he could not help but mock the pomposity of the old world and the pretentiousness of the new. His fellow travelers were wags too as they called every guide Ferguson, asked innoce
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Feb 21, 2010
Chris
rated it:
For being a non-fiction work on traveling to Europe, Africa and the Holy Lands all the way back in 1867, this book was incredibly dull. It started out interesting, but ended up being nothing but Twain crabbing about everything and digressing about unrelated moments in his life. Granted, sections of the book did have me googling locations and historical figures to gain more knowledge, so I guess the fact that I learned and revisited subjects learned in the past allows this book a few redeeming
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Jul 29, 2011
I am a Mark Twain fan, and I am also a fan of travel writers so this book was perfect for me. It was interesting to see parts of Europe and the Holy Land through Mark Twain's eyes. I have visited several of the cities he mentioned in the book and it was fascinating to hear about what he saw and the impressions he had in the 1860s compared to what I have seen and felt in my recent travels. I found the Holy Land chapters to be somewhat tedious. I don’t think he enjoyed that part of his advent
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Aug 11, 2011
Jack
rated it:
This was my constant travel companion during my month-long backpacking trip in China, and it really informed my travel journal. Twain's readily accessible, and seemingly modern sense of sharp sarcasm and biting humor was charmingly engaging. His combination of self-deprecating jokes as well as hard-hitting jokes on the short-comings of his European destinations and locals offer surprisingly deep insights on at least his perceptions of American and European identities. I (in vain) tried to replic
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Mar 12, 2011
Katie
rated it:
I have to admit this seemed to drag on and on and on at times. When Twain was describing places I've been, however, I found it more enjoyable since I could relate to some of his experiences.
Twain's dry and often sarcastic humor kept me going until the end though.
Still, if you've never read Twain and want to, I'd start with the classics... The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, or Pudd'nhead Wilson. More...
Twain's dry and often sarcastic humor kept me going until the end though.
Still, if you've never read Twain and want to, I'd start with the classics... The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, or Pudd'nhead Wilson. More...
Jan 18, 2011
Jillaire
rated it:
I'm going to cheat by putting this on the "read" shelf. I haven't actually finished it. I'm on a long-term break. (I have to return it to the library and I've got other stuff to read.) I suggested this book to my book club because it's something I've always wanted to read and I thought discussing a Mark Twain book would be a good one. Mark Twain's irony and tongue-in-cheek humor tickles me. That was definitely the case with this book, which is travelogue of a chartered European to
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Aug 27, 2009
Lkohn
rated it:
I wanted to read something different by Twain. Different this was. He begins his travel log by mocking those that keep tedious travel logs (the equivalent of modern day travel slide shows). Then he goes on and keeps one of the most tedious travel logs himself. Of course it is highly satriacle and parts of it were hilarious and enjoyable, especially for someone who has travelled abroad. But it was simply too long. For those interested it is worth picking up to read sections. But you'd have
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Mar 07, 2011
Bryan
rated it:
I thought it was a good journey narrative. It has some funny moments, and given our growing global society the roots of cosmopolitan culture that he explains in this work are growing in importance. It is interesting and comical, but it's not a novel so don't expect a cohesive story. It is only a compilation of travels which is both refreshingly different and a bit anti-conditioning (I have become too accustomed to the novel format, i think most of us have). Worth skimming, and reading an occ
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Sep 21, 2011
"The Innocents Abroad" is a classic that I have always intended to read. However, when I finally read it as my book group's monthly selection, I was quite disappointed because I have always enjoyed Mark Twain's work. I found this book to be long and tedious; a twelve month travel journal simple became monotonous to me. If it had been a shorter work, I probably would have enjoyed it much more.
However, I did find one final quote to be most meaningful and still very pertin More...
However, I did find one final quote to be most meaningful and still very pertin More...
Mar 02, 2011
Troy
rated it:
Despite the sometimes rambling asides, this book is cohesive enough to make it a classic. Not only does Twain possess the literary chops to impress, but the humour and sarcasm are fantastic. If you cracked the type of jokes now that Twain did then, you'd probably have some anti-defamation squad or human rights pannel breathing down your neck. We live in enlightened times, after all. Often considered the book that pioneered the genre of travel narrative, The Innocents Abroad is de rigueur for any
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Jan 12, 2011
Joseph
rated it:
This may well be Twain's best work, if identifying something like that is possible. An incredible tale of a journey to the old world from an American just after the Civil War. His insights and those of his fellow travelers to Europe, and the ancient lands is incredible. If there is one of his books that should be taught, next to Huck Finn, it's this. I understand that next to "Uncle Tom's Cabin" this was the best selling book of the 19th Century in America. I can understand why. If one
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Nov 14, 2011
Bebe
rated it:
The more I read, the more I love Mark Twain. He mixes truth, great story telling and a huge amount of humor to make a point.
Innocents Abroad is a travel diary of his trip through Europe and the Holy Land. Much humor, but also some very thoughtful insights about the world in the 1800s. Some take aways: Never get a shave in France, buy artwork in Italy, or take a horse across the desert. It was a little sad to realize that world no longer exists. It would not be possible to take that trip More...
Innocents Abroad is a travel diary of his trip through Europe and the Holy Land. Much humor, but also some very thoughtful insights about the world in the 1800s. Some take aways: Never get a shave in France, buy artwork in Italy, or take a horse across the desert. It was a little sad to realize that world no longer exists. It would not be possible to take that trip More...
Feb 01, 2012
Mrsgaskell
rated it:
This is a travelogue from 1867. Mark Twain took part in an excursion to Europe and the Holy Land on the steamer The Quaker City.
I enjoyed this in parts but found it tedious in others. One thing I can say, the joys of travel, and its trials and tribulations don't seem to have changed all that much in over 100 years. There were some humorous parts but overall it was not what I expected. I perhaps enjoyed most the parts where Twain visited places I have visited myself, Venice for example More...
I enjoyed this in parts but found it tedious in others. One thing I can say, the joys of travel, and its trials and tribulations don't seem to have changed all that much in over 100 years. There were some humorous parts but overall it was not what I expected. I perhaps enjoyed most the parts where Twain visited places I have visited myself, Venice for example More...
Jul 02, 2009
Greg
rated it:
Not as mature as, say, Huck Finn, and it certainly drags in places, but the understated outrageous humor at times made me laugh out loud.
This took some work to get through as it certainly shows that it was originally written as a serial in a newspaper.
It lacks some continuity and is not a self-contained narrative. Still, better than most things I've read in the last year or so.
It came up in my 8th grade English class and I recall the teacher saying good things about it, so I fi More...
This took some work to get through as it certainly shows that it was originally written as a serial in a newspaper.
It lacks some continuity and is not a self-contained narrative. Still, better than most things I've read in the last year or so.
It came up in my 8th grade English class and I recall the teacher saying good things about it, so I fi More...
