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Huckleberry Finn

by Anna Kirwan

3.74 · rating details · 509,309 ratings · 5,438 reviews

Revered by all of the town's children and dreaded by all of its mothers, Huckleberry Finn is indisputably the most appealing child-hero in American literature.

Unlike the tall-tale, idyllic world of Tom Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is firmly grounded in early reality. From the abusive drunkard who serves as Huckleberry's father, to Huck's first tent

...more

Paperback, 64 pages

Published December 15th 2009 by Skyview Books (first published 1884)

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Mar 04, 2010

David rated it

· review of another edition

After reading Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, I realized that I had absolutely nothing to say about it. And yet here, as you see, I have elected to say it anyway, and at great length.

Reading this novel now, at the age of mumble-mumble, is a bit like arriving at the circus after the tents have been packed, the bearded lady has been depilated, and the funnel cake trailers have been hitched to pick-up trucks and captained, like a formidable vending armada, toward the auburn sunset. All...more

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May 28, 2010

Matt rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: those inclined to 'light out for the territory'

"I about made up my mind to pray; and see if I couldn't try to quit being the kind of boy I was, and be better. So I kneeled down. But the words wouldn't come. Why wouldn't they? It warn't no use to try and hide it from Him. Nor from me, neither. I knowed very well why they wouldn't come. It was because my heart wasn't right; it was because I warn't square; it was because I was playing double. I was letting on to give up sin, but away inside of me I was holding on to the biggest one of all....more

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Sep 29, 2010

Alex rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, particularly-drunk-reviews

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. In coincidental honor of Banned Book Week!

Huck Finn is miles weightier than Tom Sawyer, and it's almost the Great American Novel it's called. Tom Sawyer was all fun and games - Don Quixote, as he points out himself, "all adventures and more adventures." Huck Finn's a different person; he's concerned with doing the right thing. He spends most of the novel helping a runaway slave escape, and he brilliantly represents a person judging the morals of society against the moral...moreIn coincidental honor of Banned Book Week!

Huck Finn is miles weightier than Tom Sawyer, and it's almost the Great American Novel it's called. Tom Sawyer was all fun and games - Don Quixote, as he points out himself, "all adventures and more adventures." Huck Finn's a different person; he's concerned with doing the right thing. He spends most of the novel helping a runaway slave escape, and he brilliantly represents a person judging the morals of society against the morals he's come up with himself, and ending up in the right place. That's why Huck Finn isn't a racist novel: Twain means to show us how a person who approaches life honestly will come out against racism. He's not subtle about it.

And Twain pulls off this wonderful reversal near the end of the book: Sawyer suddenly reappears on the scene, pulling the same hijinks he always has, but now we see it through Huck's and Jim's eyes, and it's maddening. Huck wants to find the most direct solution to the problem of freeing Jim, who's been recaptured. Tom wants to complicate things, as he always does; rather than just pulling a loose board out and making off, Tom insists on digging under the wall, and loosing bugs into Jim's prison so he can be properly prisonerish, and finally warning the family about the impending escape to make the whole thing more dangerous.

While Sawyer did horrible things in his own book - most notably faking his own death so his Aunt Polly could about die of sadness - we forgave him then because the book was a lark, told through his eyes, and we understood that it was all about fun. Twain takes a leap in Huck Finn, showing us an adult world and then showing us what real stakes look like when Tom Sawyer gets a hold of them, and it's devastating to watch Tom toy with Jim's life this way. This radical flip is one of Twain's best moves, and it elevates Huck Finn considerably.

But Jim, for all his humanity, is still problematic. He never drives anything forward himself, and his passivity makes me uncomfortable. He's certainly shown to be kind, and we're allowed to see him weeping for his separated wife and children, and we get to see his heavily allegorical refusal to allow Tom to throw rattlesnakes into his prison to make it more realistic. We're allowed into Jim's humanity, yeah, but he never gets to drive the plot. At the end, when he realizes that he'd been a free man all along, and Huck didn't know it but Tom did and Tom was just playing...I wanted a moment of anger from him. Didn't he deserve it? Shouldn't Jim have had a moment when he said, "What about my wife and children?"

In making Jim the co-lead but giving him no action, Twain failed Jim, and in failing Jim, Twain failed to write the Great American Novel - because the Great American Novel is about black people, too, and they're not just along for the ride. Almost, Twain!(less)

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Nov 11, 2008

Nathan rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: all

Shelves: fiction

Hemingway said American fiction begins and ends with Huck Finn, and he's right. Twain's most famous novel is a tour de force. He delves into issues such as racism, friendship, war, religion, and freedom with an uncanny combination of lightheartedness and gravitas. There are several moments in the book that are hilarious, but when I finished the book, I knew I had read something profound. This is a book that everyone should read.

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Oct 25, 2006

Jacques Bromberg rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Everyone, everyone, everyone

Shelves: favorites, prose-fiction

Ever hear people talk about wanting to write the "Greak American Novel"? Well, it's already done, and this is it. This novel is one of my longest standing favorites. It's a profound meditation on the nature of freedom, full of clever Southern folk wisdom, deeply sensitive and insightful.

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Jan 09, 2009

Dylanb2012 rated it

· review of another edition

"There was things which he stretched, but he mainly told the truth. That is nothing. I never seen anybody but lied one time or another..,"

Do you believe that the narrator is creating a meaning in the beginning of the whole story? I really can't say, but "that ain't no matter". mark Twain's "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" gives an authentic tale about the main character, Huck Finn. This young boy takes matter in his own hands and sets out to escape f...more

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Oct 04, 2008

Becky rated it

· review of another edition

Twain, Mark. 1884. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

This was my first time to voluntarily read Huckleberry Finn. (Also my first time as an adult.) I think both of those are good reasons why I enjoyed this one so much. We first met the character of Huck Finn in Mark Twain's novel, Tom Sawyer. Sawyer makes for an entertaining narrator. All humor, little substance. But good fun. Finn, on the other hand, is a narrator with a bit more depth. (Okay a lot more depth.) The Adventures of Hu...more

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Aug 01, 2008

Jamie rated it

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I've never read much of Mark Twain's stuff. I vaguely remember reading A Conneticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court in college and I think I was probably SUPPOSED to read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer at some point in school, but this was the first time I had ever picked up what's supposed to be his greatest work, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I wish I had done so sooner, because it was great.

If you're somehow unfamiliar with the basic premise, Huckleberry Finn follows the adventures ...moreI've never read much of Mark Twain's stuff. I vaguely remember reading A Conneticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court in college and I think I was probably SUPPOSED to read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer at some point in school, but this was the first time I had ever picked up what's supposed to be his greatest work, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I wish I had done so sooner, because it was great.

If you're somehow unfamiliar with the basic premise, Huckleberry Finn follows the adventures of the eponymous country boy from Missouri as he encounters trouble at home and then decides to run away via the mighty Mississippi River. Along the way he pairs up with an escaped slave named Jim and encounters all kinds of murderers, thieves, aristocrats, and swindlers. The plot summary sounds kind of like a pulp adventure story, and I admit there is a lot of that. I can see why kids --especially boys-- would be attracted to this book.

But the mark of a really good book is that it has so much literary machinery whirring and grinding below the surface that you're constantly thinking back on it, days or weeks or months after you've finished reading it. The most striking thing to me after the authentic representation of dialects was what a master of irony Twain was. It's everywhere in this book: from Tom Sawyer telling Huck that he had to let his foster parents civilize him before he could join Tom's (imaginary) band of cutthroat robbers, to Huck's saying that he's sorely disappointed in the quality of Tom's morals after the other boy agrees to help Huck free the captured runaway slave Jim. It's the same kind of juxtaposition and stinging irony that modern writers of shows like The Daily Show employ. The book is rarely laugh out loud funny, but I sure grinned a lot.

I also really love the character of Huck Finn, and I can see why he's so timeless. Huck is undoubtedly a thirteen year old country boy --he's uncouth, he's uneducated, and he's lazy. But he's also really intelligent, kind, clever, independent, and has no problem following his own moral compass even when it leads him against the grain of society and those supposedly better than him. Well, eventually. Like any thirteen year old boy he gets swept up among the actions of his elders, but he rarely hesitates for long before correcting his own course.

I also loved how Twain contrasted the characters of Huck and Tom Sawyer. Both are young boys who are smart and clever, but beyond that Tom is everything Huck is not. Tom needlessly complicates everything while Huck is much more pragmatic and direct. Tom adheres zealously to the rules governing any situation --gleaned in his case from adventure stories about pirates, robbers, and prison escapees-- while Huck is willing to question authority and come around to his own decisions about what's right. Tom lets his adherence to the rules and his desire to do things "right" lead him into inadvertent cruelty, while Huck will actually endanger himself and break the rules in order to help other people directly. It's great stuff.

So, you probably don't need me to tell you that this is an example of some of the best American literature to date given its status and how ingrained it has become in our culture. But don't let that dissuade you from checking it out.(less)

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Mar 03, 2008

Hope rated it

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So - this review is just a whole bunch of my thoughts about The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The first two paragraphs are somewhat cohesive, and the third paragraph sort-of means what I want it to,and there are definitley parts of it that could have been explained better, but from there...its just a mess of my thoughts. So anyway,I'm just warning you.

I had to read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn for school, and i really hated reading it. In fact, I didn't even read some of it ...moreSo - this review is just a whole bunch of my thoughts about The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The first two paragraphs are somewhat cohesive, and the third paragraph sort-of means what I want it to,and there are definitley parts of it that could have been explained better, but from there...its just a mess of my thoughts. So anyway,I'm just warning you.

I had to read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn for school, and i really hated reading it. In fact, I didn't even read some of it - I looked up what happened on the internet. I just couldn't read any more of it....it was so bad. The story was so ...long. And boring. I was really perplexed as to why it is referred to as "The Great American Novel".

But, thats not the point. Even though i hated reading it, I ended up loving the book, if that makes any sense...? Anyway, the book had so many important themes, but one that stuck out to me was religion. I found that everything in this book could be tied to every aspect of every different religion. For example, the characters represented different types of religions, and the land and the river represented heaven and hell because everything good happened on the river and everything bad happened on land. But then again, this is still not my point.

Looking at Mark Twain's(the author) life, I found that he saw Christianity differently from most Christians. He saw that we're judgmental and hypocritical, even though we see God with a "Big Stick". Mark Twain saw how we talk about and judge coworkers behind their backs, yet we say we're not judgmental.He saw how we see God with a "Big Stick". What I mean is, how we see God having a "Big Stick" about sinning, and how much he hates sin. Now, don't get me wrong - God does discipline us for our sins,and he does hate sin, but what I mean is....we see God too rigidly, and we forget how much he loves us. When I think about how much God loves us, I think about the song "Praise You in this Storm" by Casting Crowns. There is a line in that song that says "And every tear I cry, You hold in you hand". I think that line is a perfect example of God because he does give us trials and tests (hence, the tear) but he holds those hardships in his hand.

I realized that meaning of Huckleberry Finn is about all of that. I think what Mark Twain was trying to get across was that we all need to take another look at how we live our lives while claiming to be Christians, and how we see Christianity.

More thoughts....
Because of the always visible theme of religion in Huckleberry Finn, it made me start to think about how I see Christians. I saw what Mark Twain saw.I kept seeing Christians talking about fellow coworkers behind their backs, and speculating about them and being so judgmental. They would even make small remarks like "I know I shouldn't be talking about her", and it's like it went right over their heads, because they didn't stop.

I think that as Christians, we don't notice that kind of stuff as much as non-Christians do, and I think that is what turns them away from Christianity. They see how much we Christians think of ourselves, and then they see how hypocritical we can be. Imagine if a non-Christian overheard the scenario above? What would they think?

Anyway, I found out why this book is called "The Great American Novel".
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Jan 25, 2008

Mangy Cat rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: classics

Now, I'm not normally a fan of dialect, but I tell you, Mark Twain has given a fine example of the right way to do it. He is consistent in the spellings of the different words he uses and shows different ways of speaking for each of the characters. That is, they don't all sound alike. So it feels authentic. I really like that aspect. The language that Twain uses for Huck Finn's voice is absolutely delicious. It's so rich and wonderful you can cut it with a knife. He keeps up the quality of his m...moreNow, I'm not normally a fan of dialect, but I tell you, Mark Twain has given a fine example of the right way to do it. He is consistent in the spellings of the different words he uses and shows different ways of speaking for each of the characters. That is, they don't all sound alike. So it feels authentic. I really like that aspect. The language that Twain uses for Huck Finn's voice is absolutely delicious. It's so rich and wonderful you can cut it with a knife. He keeps up the quality of his main character's voice throughout the entire novel, staying consistent and making the story so much more sweet than it would be otherwise.

One thing I noticed is that though Huck's grammar leaves something to be desired, he actually has quite a good vocabulary. I wonder how that worked out? I suppose it had something to do with the fact that he lived a lot of his life "uneducated" then went to school once he was living with the widow. He used a word like "frivolous"--which you wouldn't think a kid who uses "weren't" instead of "wasn't" would know.

I wish I'd read through Huck Finn with a highlighter in hand, because there are so many amazing passages that are supremely wise and/or are worded in such a way as to express some simple, great truth or lesson through Huck's incredible narration. One of the bits that stands out in my mind is this one. Huck is having dinner with a big group, and the women who cooked are talking about the food:

Mary Jane she set at the head of the table, with Susan alongside her, and said how bad the biscuits was, and how mean the preserves was, and how ornery and tough the fried chicken was--and all that kind of rot, the way women always do for to force out compliments; and all the people all knowed everything was tiptop, and said so--said, "How DO you get biscuits so brown and nice?" and "Where, for land's sake, did you get these amaz'n pickles?" and all that kind of humbug talky-talk, just the way people always does at a supper, you know.

Just writing that out makes me hunger for more. This is definitely one to re-read in the future, if only just to savor the taste of it once again.
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Mar 13, 2008

Randy rated it

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Shelves: fiction

For a book that's supposedly the source of "all modern American literature," there's a lot you can pick on. Like the careening plot, or the last ten chapters of the book (which is kind of like eating Sour Patch Kids after a chocolate souffle). I can just see Mark Twain paging anxiously through the first thirty-one chapters and muttering, "I can't take any more of this literary merit--if I don't bring in Tom Sawyer to screw things up, I'm going to have a freaking aneurysm." ...more

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Jun 07, 2007

Mme. Bookling ~ rated it

· review of another edition

How does one go until age 28 before reading this? I have no idea--but I was delighted WAY beyond expectation and learned so much when I read this and taught it to my students.

Tom Sawyer was Twain's children’s "adult" book with no real social message; Huck Finn was his adult "children's" book, therefore--I enjoyed it much more than Tom Sawyer. Rich with social awareness, it was fascinating (especially, and it's a must) to read the Norton Critical Edition of the boo...moreHow does one go until age 28 before reading this? I have no idea--but I was delighted WAY beyond expectation and learned so much when I read this and taught it to my students.

Tom Sawyer was Twain's children’s "adult" book with no real social message; Huck Finn was his adult "children's" book, therefore--I enjoyed it much more than Tom Sawyer. Rich with social awareness, it was fascinating (especially, and it's a must) to read the Norton Critical Edition of the book which highlighted how Twain lost his train of thought for years and years. It also highlights some deleted chapters from the original manuscript--which poses for a very thought-provoking discussion.

It's easier if you read it from wikipedia--but it's all the stuff I learned and love!!

“Twain initially conceived of the work as a companion to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer that would follow Huck Finn through adulthood. Beginning with a chapter he had deleted from the earlier novel, Twain began work on a manuscript he originally titled Huckleberry Finn's Autobiography. Twain worked on the manuscript off and on for the next several years, ultimately abandoning his original plan of following Huck's development into adulthood. He appeared to have lost interest in the manuscript while it was in progress, and set it aside for several years. After making a trip down the Mississippi, Twain returned to his work on the novel. Upon completion, the novel's title closely paralleled its predecessor's: "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Tom Sawyer's Comrade)" [1]”

It is commonly said that the beginning and ending of the book, the parts in which Tom Sawyer appears as a character, detract from its overall impact. Others feel Tom serves to start the story off and to bring it to a conclusion, and that Tom's ridiculous schemes have the paradoxical effect of providing a framework of 'reality' around the mythical river voyage. Much of the boyhood innocence and romantic depictions of nature occur in the first sixteen chapters and the last five, while the middle of the story shows the harsh realities of antebellum society.”

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Dec 03, 2009

James rated it

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Shelves: fiction, u-of-chicago, study-group, sunday-morning

Huckleberry Finn, like other classic works of the imagination, can provide every reader with whatever he is capable of finding as he reads. The well of the narrative runs as deep as the Mississippi River. Thus the book may be enjoyed by young boys and adults as well. It also means that the book can be and is a foundational document in American literature influencing many writers who have followed in its wake. I have enjoyed my readings and as with all great works of literature I look forward...more

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Jan 22, 2009

Ericamarie22 added it · review of another edition

The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn, thumbs up or thumbs down? I rated this novel with a thumbs down for several reasons. My reason consist of boring, difficult, and too much.

Starting off, I found this book boring. I just couldn't get into it. The parts about Miss Watson always telling Huck what to do, just didn't make me want to read more. Another part that i found boring was when Huck was supposed to run away. Instead he decided to play with his friends one last time. " Don't gap...more

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Jan 08, 2011

Manny rated it

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Shelves: strongly-recommended, well-i-think-its-funny, blame-jordan-if-you-like

One of my absolute favourite books, which I have read multiple times. A major classic. If at all possible, get an edition with the original illustrations.
__________________________________________________________________

(Expanded review based on conversation with JORDAN)

Here in Switzerland, l'affaire du mot N hasn't quite had the high profile it's received on its home territory. In fact, I'm embarrassed to admit that I hadn't even heard of it until Jordan gave me a ...moreOne of my absolute favourite books, which I have read multiple times. A major classic. If at all possible, get an edition with the original illustrations.
__________________________________________________________________

(Expanded review based on conversation with JORDAN)

Here in Switzerland, l'affaire du mot N hasn't quite had the high profile it's received on its home territory. In fact, I'm embarrassed to admit that I hadn't even heard of it until Jordan gave me a few pointers earlier today. So, no doubt all this has been said before, but I still can't resist the temptation to add my two centimes worth.

In case you're as ignorant as I was about hot topics in the literary world, the furore concerns an edition of Huckleberry Finn in which the word 'nigger' has been systematically replaced with 'slave'. My initial response was plain surprise. One of the aspects of the book I enjoy most is Twain's appallingly exact ear for dialogue. He's reproducing the language actually used in the American South of the 1840s, and this, above all, is what gives the novel its force; so why on earth would anyone want to change it? For example, here's Huck's Paw in full flow:

"Oh, yes, this is a wonderful govment, wonderful. Why, looky here. There was a free nigger there from Ohio -- a mulatter, most as white as a white man. He had the whitest shirt on you ever see, too, and the shiniest hat; and there ain't a man in that town that's got as fine clothes as what he had; and he had a gold watch and chain, and a silver-headed cane -- the awfulest old gray-headed nabob in the State. And what do you think? They said he was a p'fessor in a college, and could talk all kinds of languages, and knowed everything. And that ain't the wust. They said he could vote when he was at home. Well, that let me out. Thinks I, what is the country a-coming to? It was 'lection day, and I was just about to go and vote myself if I warn't too drunk to get there; but when they told me there was a State in this country where they'd let that nigger vote, I drawed out. I says I'll never vote agin. Them's the very words I said; they all heard me; and the country may rot for all me -- I'll never vote agin as long as I live. And to see the cool way of that nigger -- why, he wouldn't a give me the road if I hadn't shoved him out o' the way. I says to the people, why ain't this nigger put up at auction and sold? -- that's what I want to know. And what do you reckon they said? Why, they said he couldn't be sold till he'd been in the State six months, and he hadn't been there that long yet. There, now -- that's a specimen. They call that a govment that can't sell a free nigger till he's been in the State six months. Here's a govment that calls itself a govment, and lets on to be a govment, and thinks it is a govment, and yet's got to set stock-still for six whole months before it can take a hold of a prowling, thieving, infernal, white-shirted free nigger.

I'm sorry, but I'm honestly unable to see how anyone could think the above passage was racist or might be improved by substituting 'slave' for 'nigger'. It's incidents like this which create the popular European myth that Americans don't understand the concept of irony.

If you're curious to know more about the tradition of improving great works of literature by removing dubious words, you might want to take a quick look at the Wikipedia article on Thomas Bowdler which Jordan and I were giggling over. Bowdler, it turns out, had acted from the best of motives. When he was young, his father had entertained him by reading aloud from Shakespeare; but

Later, Bowdler realised his father had been extemporaneously omitting or altering passages he felt unsuitable for the ears of his wife and children. Bowdler felt it would be worthwhile to present an edition which might be used in a family whose father was not a sufficiently "circumspect and judicious reader" to accomplish this expurgation himself.

He undertook to create a suitably amended version. Or, to be exact, he got his sister to do it and then gave out the books under his own name. Again, his reasons were unimpeachable: it would have reflected badly on her to admit that she had understood the naughtier passages.

I won't criticise Dr Bowdler or his equally well-meaning modern followers. I just think it's a shame Mark Twain never had the opportunity to write a story about them.
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May 20, 2008

Skinnywhitedude19 rated it

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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, is about a young boy, Huck, in search of freedom and adventure. The shores of the Mississippi River provide the backdrop for the entire book.

Huck is kidnapped by Pap, his drunken father. Pap kidnaps Huck because he wants Huck's $6000. Huck was awarded $6000 from the treasure he and Tom Sawyer found in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Huck finally escapes from the deserted house in the woods and finds a canoe to shove off down the river. I...moreThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain, is about a young boy, Huck, in search of freedom and adventure. The shores of the Mississippi River provide the backdrop for the entire book.

Huck is kidnapped by Pap, his drunken father. Pap kidnaps Huck because he wants Huck's $6000. Huck was awarded $6000 from the treasure he and Tom Sawyer found in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Huck finally escapes from the deserted house in the woods and finds a canoe to shove off down the river. Instead of going back to the widow's house, he decides to run away. He is sick of all of the confinement and civilization that the window enforces upon him. He comes across Jim, Miss Watson's slave, and together, they spend nights and days journeying down the river, both in search of freedom.

While traveling on a raft down the river, Huck and Jim have many adventures and during many long talks, become best of friends. They find a house with a dead man. They end up stealing many things from the house. They find a wrecked ship, and go on it, only to be mixed up with murderers. They get away with money and some other goods. They get separated from each other in the heavy fog, but eventually find each other. A steamboat crashes into their raft and Jim and Huck are separated again. Huck has a run-in with the Grangerfords and the Shepherdsons, two families at war with each other. He is reunited with Jim shortly after this. Then, they meet the King and the Duke, and get into a good deal of trouble performing plays. The King and the Duke pretend to be Peter Wilks' long lost brothers from England and try to steal all of the money left behind in his will. They escape before they are caught. Huck finally gets rid of them, but is left to search for Jim, who gets sold by the King. He ends up at Tom Sawyer's Aunt Sally's house, where Tom and Huck rescue Jim.

Through all of the adventures down the river, Huck learns a variety of life lessons and improves as a person. He develops a conscience and truly feels for humanity. The complexity of his character is enhanced by his ability to relate so easily with nature and the river.(less)

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Feb 02, 2008

Rick rated it

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Shelves: fiction

Hadn’t read this wonderful book in a couple of decades, though I used to read it every few years. The book begs to be read aloud. The dialect sings with natural beauty. The descriptions of the Mississippi, small town life and the rural landscape are poetry. The humor is stand-up comic funny and so skillful you admire the jokes with the same wonder you admire the descriptions of storms on the river, which is as if you were witnessing them, rather than reading about them. And there isn’t a better ...more

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Aug 04, 2008

Charity rated it

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Recommends it for: lovers of great American lit

Shelves: 1001books, faves

When I read this as a child, I really enjoyed it. But, since it had been around 20 years since I cracked the spine, I thought I would pick it up again. Upon rereading now, I've discovered:

This is not a book for children. Just look at the first line of the Duke's hapless attempt to recite Hamlet's soliloquy: To be or not to be, that is the bare bodkin. Obviously, the jokes in Huck Finn are aimed at adults. So are the life lessons -- about following your conscience and questioning the ...more

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Jul 26, 2007

Ivy's Mom rated it

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Shelves: booksireadinthe80s, classics, audio_books, banned-books, 1001-books

July 2007 - Had to drive from St. Louis, MO to Joplin, MO and back the next day. I decided this would be the perfect book for a trans-Missouri trip...and it was. Since I knew the story it was easy to keep up with and it kept me chuckling, but it has been 25 years since I read so it was new again at the same time. I wanted to cry at the end...and give Tom Sawyer and good smack too!

It was required reading in high school. I tried to be a good teenager and hate it. Somehow it has stu...more

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Jan 23, 2009

Shayana rated it

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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Have you ever had to read a book for school and there wasn’t any if, ands, or buts about it? Well let me tell you the truth I have, the book was called The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.I really didn’t like this book, you know when you’re reading a book and you really can’t understand the grammar or language because there’s a lot of slang. Another reason why I didn’t like this book was the characters like a book can have its main c...more The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Have you ever had to read a book for school and there wasn’t any if, ands, or buts about it? Well let me tell you the truth I have, the book was called The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.I really didn’t like this book, you know when you’re reading a book and you really can’t understand the grammar or language because there’s a lot of slang. Another reason why I didn’t like this book was the characters like a book can have its main characters but you can’t tell who is who. Furthermore my reason last reason on why I didn’t like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the book was just plain on confusing to me when something can be happening then just like that something else can happens. My first reason why I didn’t like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, because I had a hard time understanding the grammar and or language for example in chapter 8 I Spare Miss Watson’s Jim “Doan hurt me-don’t! I haint ever done no harm to a ghos.”see what I mean from reading this, there was a tongue twist. My second reason was the characters the first character was Miss Watson in this book slave’s weren’t able to learn how to read or write just because Jim wanted to know how to read and write there’s nothing wrong with that she didn’t want him to know because no one in his family knew how so she made him stop. The second character was Huckleberry Finn father Pap he was a junky all he did was drink and then try to kill Huck “he chased me round and round the place with a clasp-knife, calling me the Angel of Death, and saying he was going to kill me, and then I couldn’t come for him any more. I begged and told him I was only Huck; but he laughed such a screechy laugh and roared and cussed, and kept on chasing me up.” Last character was Huckleberry Finn if you talked about Pap you have to talk about Huckleberry Finn. He was confused about if him and Jim were best friends or not one minute they were, then the next minute they wasn’t. At one point he was going to tell on Jim. “then I thought a minute, and says to myself, hold on;s’pose you’d ‘a’ done right and give Jim up, would you felt better than what you do now? No, says I, I’d fell bad-I’d feel just the same way I do now. “Well, then says I, whats the use you learning to do when its wrong its troublesome to do right and ain’t no trouble to do wrong, and wages is just the same? I was stuck.” My final reason was this book was just plain confusing. To many parts in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn would happen at once, you could be reading about a character then next thing you know you’ll reading about a different character also why this book was confusing I couldn’t tell which character was who. Sometimes I would think that Huckleberry Finn was Jim when Jim is black and Huckleberry Finn was white, when I was really confused every time they brought up the name Tom Sawyer.
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Jan 12, 2009

Pedr0br2012 rated it

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Have you ever read a book so confusing, that when you started to read it, you would like it, but maybe later on you wouldn’t? Well, Huckleberry Finn is one. The author was so conscious about slavery issues; he made the first African American hero book. Mark Twain made millions of people love it. However, it was so controversial that some people hated it. Because it has so much bad language, crazy accents and so many confusing words. I'm not sure if I like it or not.

What makes the boo...more

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Jan 22, 2009

Ishaiah2012 added it · review of another edition

Dear reader, see if you can read this!” Doan hurt me don’t, I haint ever done no harm to a ghoas? I alwuz liked dead people, en done all I could for em, you go en git in de river ag’in whah you b’longs, en doan, do nuffin to ole jim’ at ‘ uz alwuz you fren.’’ How would you feel if you had to read this book. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain and have to go through this language. I know you would feel the same way as me. Huckleberry is very overwhelming on some parts. It had a lot...more

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Jan 22, 2009

Brittany rated it

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“It’s a good book.”
“No, it’s not. It was stupid.”
“It was not stupid. It was awesome.”
“I guess. Wait, no. No it wasn’t.”
“Guys this book was both. You can’t say that it was good, but you can’t say that it was awesome either.”
Huckleberry Finn had me conflicted. This book lost me at some parts, and it kept confusing me. This book surprised me, like when a white boy helps a runaway slave. The language in this book could go both ways. The word “nigger” appears many times,...more

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Jan 22, 2009

Briana2012 rated it

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This book is so racist, it says the N-word too many times". "Yes it does". "The language s difficult to understand, like did they actually speak like this." "Maybe so." "And…." "This book keeps it real. The
language, the speech, and the character have real characteristics. Which makes The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn… a real experience.” “I guess so.”

I enjoyed reading the book, The Adventures of Huckleberry because of the lang...more

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Jan 22, 2009

Kaylam2012 added it · review of another edition

New and Old

Have you ever read a book that was the same old same old, but still brought something new to the table? Well, the story “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain does just that. For this reason I have two different opinions about this book, those opinions are good and bad. The fact that this book is something I can see on the news is one reason why I despise it. The conflict between man verses man, doesn’t really seem realistic to me. On the contrary, I admire thi...moreNew and Old

Have you ever read a book that was the same old same old, but still brought something new to the table? Well, the story “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain does just that. For this reason I have two different opinions about this book, those opinions are good and bad. The fact that this book is something I can see on the news is one reason why I despise it. The conflict between man verses man, doesn’t really seem realistic to me. On the contrary, I admire this book. It shows both sides of the fence, and eliminates the idea that the grass is greener on the other side.

For starters, one reasons I absolutely loath this book is because it repeats or restates things that are happening today in the present. In the story Huck joins a gang, like Tom proposes. “Now we’ll start this of robbers and call it Tom Sawyers Gang.”, there are actual gangs in the real world too. The difference between Huck’s gang and the gangs in my neighborhood is that the gangs in my neighborhood really do kill and rob people. The violence in the story is nothing compared to the violence in my everyday life. If I watched the news right now, I can guarantee someone is dead do to violence. When Buck got shot in the story, it wasn’t anything new to my normal life. I know people who got shot; I hear people shooting at each other all the time. I hear gun shots so much, I can tell the difference between a gunshot and a fire cracker. This story brings nothing new to my table called “life”.

The following reason is the resolution to the conflict irritates me. What conflict bothers you? The conflict between Huck and his father, Pap, annoys me to no end. In the story Huck’s father was abusive, neglected and jealous, of and to Huck, but that is not what seems unrealistic to me. “I slipped the ramrod it to make sure it was loaded and then I laid it across the trans barrel, pointing towards pap, and set down behind it to wait for him to stir.”, at this exact moment Huck had the chance to kill his father, but didn’t take it. Any real person would have shot their father if their father was like Pap. I mean, Huck had a chance to get revenge for what his father did to him, and didn’t take it. His father even tried to kill Huck, but Huck still didn’t shoot him. If that was a real person, they would have got their revenge; all people want revenge when someone hurts them. That is why I feel that this story is a bit unrealistic to how people really behave.

The only reason why I actually like this book is for what this books shows. Many stories do not show both sides of the fence like “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain, does. All I can say while reading this story is “WOW! This author must have been really opened minded while writing this story”. This story proves to be very revealing of how people think and how guilt affects people’s actions. The perfect example is the relationship between Jim and Huck was more of a guilt, then love and compassion. “I got a feeling to mean and miserable I most wished I was dead” Huck said, when he was between a rock and a hard place. Huck believed that freeing a slave was wrong, but Jim made Huck feel guilty by saying he was a great man for freeing Jim. This story shows the two total opposites clashing and cladding all the time. These opposites are not something everyone wrote about back then. By doing this Mark Twain brings something totally new to the table of literature.

Well, that is all I have to say about “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain. The story makes me feel like I already been there and done that before. The conflict between Huck and Pap seems fairy tale like to me. Even with all this said I still have to admit, the story still brings fresh splash of ice tea to my glass of boring water. Remember if you want to read a story that fuels your boredom, but at the same time gives you something new, read “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain. You will only be half asleep reading it!

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Mar 11, 2009

MCOH rated it

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I had mixed feelings about this book.

On the one hand, it's clear that Mark Twain was progressive for his day, satirizing the topsy-turvy morals of the slavery-era south. His heroes are two people at the bottom rung of the social ladder - a runaway slave, and the son of the town drunk. Though they're not valued by society, they turn out to be the two most honorable characters of the book. And I appreciated the questions it raised, about how we construct our own sense of morality i...moreI had mixed feelings about this book.

On the one hand, it's clear that Mark Twain was progressive for his day, satirizing the topsy-turvy morals of the slavery-era south. His heroes are two people at the bottom rung of the social ladder - a runaway slave, and the son of the town drunk. Though they're not valued by society, they turn out to be the two most honorable characters of the book. And I appreciated the questions it raised, about how we construct our own sense of morality in the context of broader social morals, and how we deal with potential conflicts between those two. I loved Huck for choosing to go to hell rather than turn in his friend.

On the other hand, it's such a far-fetched farce, with so many over-the-top scenes, one crazy situation after another, so many coincidences, such silliness, that I had a hard time enjoying it. At the end, Tom keeps adding all kinds of superfluous details into the escape plan, just to satisfy his sense of drama. The author seems to think this will be amusing - see how it's a funny game to Tom, see how he's influenced by all the adventure books he's ever read... And I just wanted to smack the kid, and say, "A man's life is in danger! How dare you treat this like a game of make-believe! Just get him out of there, you idiot!"

The humor reminded me a lot of Candide. That style (social satire, ironic farce, fable, whatever you want to call it) can be a great way to make a point. But it's not the same as a novel with well-developed characters and a realistic plot.

Sometimes I enjoy satire, but yesterday, I just wasn't in the mood. I felt like the atrocities committed in our country against African-Americans were just too horrific to laugh at.

I have heard that people often protest this book when it appears on school curricula, because of the repeated use of the n-word. I think I had an easier time accepting that word, because it reflected the common usage of the time, and it felt like part of the natural, authentic voice of the narrator. I had a harder time with the portrayal of Jim as a naive, superstitious, gullible, person, who seems completely dependent on a young white boy to figure out what to do. Jim is good, but he doesn’t come across as particularly smart. He's more an archetype - the noble savage - than a real person.

I think the main value of this book is as a historical artifact. You can see the important role it played if you look at what it was for the time it was written in, and how it influenced other books written in America. But I don’t think it could get published today. I'm glad to say, we've come a long way.

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Sep 25, 2010

Hayes rated it

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Shelves: gutenberg, read-in-2010, ebook

A truly grand adventure. I read this when I was in school (and hated it), but I am glad I have now seen why it is such a classic. I had completely forgotten the anguish that Huck suffers while trying to decide what to do about his friend Jim, the runaway slave. Of course he makes the right decision and learns something about the nature of prayer in the process.

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Jan 13, 2009

Katerri2012 rated it

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HUCKLEBERRY CRIST and JESUS FINN! Wait what? Oh sorry I meant to say Jesus Christ and Huckleberry Finn. I guess because there so much alike I accidentally mixed up their names. You must be asking your yourself, how on earth do you shuffle the names of a lying, stealing, misbehaving, little boy, and a kind, generous, faithful, thirty- three year old man? Well even though it isn’t very obvious, if you pay attention to little details and know the story of both Christ and Huck Finn, you'll find that...moreHUCKLEBERRY CRIST and JESUS FINN! Wait what? Oh sorry I meant to say Jesus Christ and Huckleberry Finn. I guess because there so much alike I accidentally mixed up their names. You must be asking your yourself, how on earth do you shuffle the names of a lying, stealing, misbehaving, little boy, and a kind, generous, faithful, thirty- three year old man? Well even though it isn’t very obvious, if you pay attention to little details and know the story of both Christ and Huck Finn, you'll find that they a very much alike.

To start with, if your are familiar with the story of Jesus Christ, you know that after his baptism he wondered around the dessert in a humble manner for forty days and forty nights, where he is believed to be tempted by the devil. In Huckleberry’s case, the dessert would be the Mississippi River where he traveled for weeks with his pal Jim, and encountered many devils, such as the Phelps. On the Phelps plantation the family treats Huck well and he is tempted to stay there even though Jim gets captured, and sold back into slavery. However, Huck overcomes his temptation and saves Jim.

Secondly, Jesus was last seen in the company of thieves as was Huckleberry. So if you haven’t read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn let me fill you in. Huck’s last encounter with thieves would have to be his run in with the King and the Duke. The Duke and the King pretend to be the brothers of Mr. Wilks, a man who has passed away and has left everything to his brothers and three daughters, but the thieves are not willing to share, that want everything that Mr. Wilks has left behind, and so they scheme to trick the girls into giving them everything. Huck claims they make him ashamed of the human race.

Last but certainly not least, Jesus Christ and Huckleberry Finn are both very forgiving and self sacrificing. As you may know Christ sacrificed his life for mankind and even though everyone was willing to kill him, he begged god to forgive them. If Jim would have told Huck about his dead father, he could of lived his life the way he wanted to and not have to go through all the misfortunate that he encountered. Nonetheless, when Jim tells Huck his father is dead Huck forgives him. Huckleberry was willing to sacrifice himself for one black man during slavery in the south. To me, that’s just honorable and heroic as what Jesus did.

All in All, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was a enjoyable book to read, and I highly recommend it if your in the mood for a good challenge and some adventure. However if you are under the age of eighteen, and your parents wont let you read it because of its reputation for cursing and explicit violence, you could just explain to them that Huck in many ways is just like Christ. And if that doesn’t work you could always read the bible. Its basically the same thing as reading Huckleberry Finn itself.(less)

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Jul 18, 2010

King Dinösaur rated it

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Recommends it for: everybody

Shelves: classic, read-more-than-once, all-time-favorites, re-reading

I know you're all familiar with this book but it's my favorite so I'm adding it to my list. Also, though I've listed 1983 as the "date read", I have to admit I've read this book over a dozen times and probably will read it at least a dozen times more.

Those who would ban this masterpiece should be smacked upside their ignorant heads.

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Feb 25, 2011

Brian rated it

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Shelves: american-lit

A true gem of a text that is highly expressive of the American spirit of the late 1800's, lasting on until, I would say, in my humblest of opinions, 1950 or so. Huckleberry Finn himself is very American: sensible, adventurous, non-pretentious, matter-of-fact, survivalist, endowed with a sense of justice for what's fair and right, and an outcast. By contrast, old Tom Sawyer is more of the old world: domestic, idealistic, wanting things to be done the proper way, etc, although still very independe...moreA true gem of a text that is highly expressive of the American spirit of the late 1800's, lasting on until, I would say, in my humblest of opinions, 1950 or so. Huckleberry Finn himself is very American: sensible, adventurous, non-pretentious, matter-of-fact, survivalist, endowed with a sense of justice for what's fair and right, and an outcast. By contrast, old Tom Sawyer is more of the old world: domestic, idealistic, wanting things to be done the proper way, etc, although still very independent and adventurous himself (we know, though, from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer that Huck can be away longer from home than Tom can. This is undoubtedly due to his having a stronger home connection than Huck, but that only further speaks to Huck's American-ness: no home is quite so homely as being ever on the move, seeking out new adventure).

I'm sure it's been commented on innumerably by learned folk the world 'round, but a review would not be complete without a praise of Huck's relationship with Jim. It is truly a golden friendship; each reasons, unpretentiously, uninhibitedly, very matter-of-factly with the other. The scenes of the two floating down the Mississippi are incredibly idyllic, and among the finest writing in all of American literature:

"We had the sky, up there, all speckled with stars, and we used to lay on our backs and look up at them, and discuss about whether they was made, or only just happened--Jim he allowed they was made, but I allowed they happened; I judged it would have took too long to make so many. Jim said the moon could a laid them; well, that looked kind of reasonable, so I didn't say nothing against it, because I've seen a frog lay most as many, so of course it could be done. We used to watch the stars that fell, too, and see them streak down. Jim allowed they'd got spoiled and was hove out of the nest."

This matter-of-fact reasoning between man and nature, and man with his fellow man, so characterizes the American-ness of the novel. There is no pretentious, highly-educated or sophisticated explanation for the cause of the cosmos (indeed, such reasoning would only create confusion and be looked down upon), but simple, intuitive gestures of understanding that equally accept differences of opinion. One's own interpretation of nature (and, by extension, the world, society, etc.) is enough for oneself. (less)

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