Complete Short Stories of Mark Twain (Bantam Classic)
by Mark Twain
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Read in September, 2007
recommends it for:
anybody who loves to read a short 20 minute story
so far the book has had some weird stories but they are all completely understandable. they have had some very interesting stories. in the first story i had read, the title had given me a bit of a hint as to what the story was to be about. it had contained the word cannibal, which had me a little shocked but i had read on knowing that it would be a good story because it was written by mark twain. as the story unfolds i am hinted to the fact that people are being sacrificed i beleive for just on ...more
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Read in March, 2004
recommends it for:
Humor readers, literary readers, classics readers
Twain explored the gamut of subjects in short stories. There are very serious, touching tales, like the reflections of a slave on his painless but joyless life. There are quirky and absurd stories, like the opening one narrated by a blue jay. There's a wealth of humor, from small-time scams like "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," to the civilized politics of cannibalism discussed by senators stuck under an avalanche in "Cannibalism in the Cars." The longer stor...more
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recommends it for:
lovers of good, witty, intelligent short stories
One of the shames of literature in our era is that Mark Twain is primarily taught as and known for his novels, especially Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer. Now, I'll tell you straight, I found Tom Sawyer boring and Huck Finn almost unreadable. Twain was a decent novelist. His travel nonfiction books are better. He was an amazing short story writer. If you haven't read Twain's short stories you are missing out on his true brilliance, insight, wit, and ability. "Some Learned Fables, For Good Ol...more
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Read in February, 2008
The reason I can only say this is a three star is that a number of the stories do not hold up too well. This is not to say that those stories are bad, or not even enjoyable. I just found myself struggling in certain stories to finish them. The stories that stood out most, much like a punch in the face, due to the style and great word play were: The Dairy of Adam and Eve,A Day at Niagara, The Story of a Bad Little Boy, and Cannibalism in the Cars. Those stories I just didn't read to get tot he ne...more
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Read in January, 1993
recommends it for:
ANYONE!!!!!!
I LOVED this book! I had to read it for school, and Mark Twain's short stories are among the best thing he's done. If anybody ever wants a sort of beginner's taste of Twain without digging into one of his longer works, this is perfect. Plenty of moments where I left out loud---"The Story of the Good Little Boy," "The Story of the Bad Little Boy" and the Adam and Eve diaries are my favorites.
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For some reason, mine has a different cover than the one shown. The ones I remember best, so probably my favorite ones when I read them, are "Extracts from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven," "The Diary of Adam and Eve," and "Cannibalism in the Cars." This last is a spoof of parliamentary procedure.
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recommends it for:
people who like seeing the world from a new perspective
Slowly making my way through... digesting each morsel in time. What a brilliant writer-- all of his work is always dripping with satire. I really enjoyed the short story entitled: "The Diary of Adam and Eve."
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Bunch of stories here...im through about 4 of 50...seems like its gonna get better...they are chronological....
just picked it up for 50cents at the book sale at the Library :)...
just picked it up for 50cents at the book sale at the Library :)...
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A must for any library containing American writiers. There's a goat, and a cow that fall through the roof, and a liar - oops, many liars. Great for the occasional quick read.
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Any and all Mark Twain, any time of the day or year. He is my favorite author. I roll around on the floor laughing with tears in my eyes when I read his short stories.
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I have read "The Notorious Jumping Frogs of Calaveras County." I enjoyed that story, and LOVE Huck Finn, so I would like to read more of this book.
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Read in January, 1996
Mark Twain the short story writer may be even more brilliant than Mark Twain the novelist. The Diary of Adam and Eve is fabulous.
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Read in January, 1989
recommends it for:
Those who laugh at absurdities
Everyone knows about Mark Twain---Huckleberry, the Jumping Frog. So many more "yarns" are funny. Really funny.
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I got this complete collection at a used book sale for 25 cents! He is one of my favourites.
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"Celebrated Jumping Frog..." is Carp - 500
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book data (includes all editions)
avg rating (all editions): 4.31 (410 ratings) avg rating (this edition): 4.31 (363 ratings) number of reviews: 23popular shelves
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![The complete short stories of Mark Twain [pseud.]: Now collected for the first time (Unknown Binding)](http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1203806535s/194780.jpg)
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