Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

by Tom Ratliff (Adapter), Mark Twain

Some call this the greatest American novel ever written. It's the story of a runaway boy, Huck Finn, and his friend Jim, a runaway slave, as they ride a raft on the Mississippi River and encounter mishaps and adventure when they go ashore. Using the graphic novel format, "Graphic Classics " introduce children to many of the world's greatest literary works. The high quality illustrations complement narratives that are paced to catch and hold young readers' interest. In addition to its story, each "Graphic Classic " features a thumbnail biography of its author's life, a list of his or her important works, a timeline of historic events that helped inspire the story's conception, general notes, and an index. Both primary and secondary school teachers can use these books to introduce students to a representative selection of our culture's great literary works. Many young readers who are hesitant to delve into the original books will find the graphic novel format an appealing first step toward developing good reading habits. "Graphic Classics " are available in both paperback and hardcover editions.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Young Adult

48 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2008

About the author

Tom teaches Connecticut History and Principles of Education at Central Connecticut State University. He also teaches in the Online Program for the Community Colleges of Connecticut. He is currently writing a book about Connecticut history for middle school-aged students. With Carole B. Shmurak he is the co-author of the Matty Trescott novels—a six-book series set in the Civil War era under the pseudonym Carroll Thomas.

Reviews

[Claudio Kappel]

Esta é a história de um personagem que desenvolve, no dia-a-dia, situações de crime, como uma tentativa malsucedida de linchamento, um bando que assina papel por atividades ilegais na cidade, etc
O que parece normal e natural para o bom senso é, na realidade, considerado ilegal por lei. Às vezes, até para punir uma pessoa condenada pela justiça e tudo, o crime organizado está envolvido. Caso contrário, o resultado não seria o esperado.

[Sharlene Shazzy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought I had requested the Mark Twain novel from the library - turns out it was this instead. I actually loved this. I wanted to read the novel because I’m excited to read James and wanted context for it. I’d still like to read the novel, but I thought this little graphic story was really well done, though I think a bit more context in a few spots would’ve been valuable. I really appreciated the educational information at the end about Mark Twain, the Mississippi River, and slavery.

[StrictlySequential · Rating 3 out of 5]

ALL "GRAPHIC CLASSICS" TITLES do an exceptional job of keeping the reader up-with-the-times as the book progresses by footnoting bygone words/phrases WHILE ALSO beginning the adaptation with a page of who-looks-like-what and ending with an impressive amount of history surrounding the book and the author including a complete and comprehensive timeline of both!

[Andy Hickman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mark Twain, “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: Graphic Classics” (Hauppauge, NY: Barron's, 2008)
Retold by Tom Ratliff, illustrated by Penko Gelev.

“You feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft.”

This is the first 'Graphic Classics' by 'Barron's' that I've encountered, and it's excellent: realistic drawings, title description on each double-page, helpful footnotes explaining antiquated terms, e.g.:

THE TWO RUNAWAYS
“I didn't want anyone to know I had helped a slave escape. I had a reputation to uphold, and didn't want to be called an abolitionist. At the same time, I didn't want Jim to get caught.”
Footnote - {Abolitionist: a person who thinks slavery should be abolished (banned). Huck is confused because he has been brought up to believe that slavery is right, but now he is not so sure.} (p16)

The story is told in words beneath each picture square with speech bubbles reflecting the narrative rather than driving it. Additionally, it has a full page character listing, page numbers (not all graphic novels have page numbers), and following the story there is:
a double-page feature describing the life of the author, Mark Twain (1835-1910), (p40-41)
another double-page on 'The Mississippi River' and 'Riverboats' (p42-43).
There are also pages on:
'Huck Finn and Slavery' (p44)
'History of American Slavery' (p45)
'Other Books by Mark Twain' (p46)
'Stage and Screen Adaptations of Huckleberry Finn' (p47)
and an 'Index' (p48)

LIFE ON THE RAFT
“I was glad we had escaped, and glad Jim was with me. I was beginning to like him a lot. I was starting to see that he wasn't just a slave but a real person, like me.” (p18)
“Jim said … if he couldn't buy them [his family] he'd have to steal them. This upset me – my conscience began to bother me some.”
Footnote – {Huck's conscience: Huck wants his friend to be a free man, but he knows that it is against the law to help a slave escape. His conscience is troubled because in order to do what he thinks is right – to set Jim free – he must breal the law.}
“Jim was a good friend, but I was beaking the law by helping him esacpe. I didn't care about the eward, but the problem weighed heavy on my heart.” (p19)

THE PLOT UNRAVELS
“Now that Jim was captured, I was overcome with guilt and shame.”
“I had helped a slave escape. I knew in my heart that I was a bad person.”
Footnote – {a bad person: We know that this is not true – but Huck knows that he has broken the law.}
“I tried to pray, but couldb't, so I decided to write to Miss Watson and tell her the truth.” (p33)

MY NEW PLAN
“But I thought of all the good times we'd had together … No – Jim and I were friends and I could never betray him, even if he was a slave.”
“So I tore up the note and decided to continue my wicked ays and save Jim from slavery.” (p34)

[Valerie]

As a pre-teen, I faked reading Mark Twain in middle school. As a Literature teacher, I avoid putting Twain novels on my syllabus and opt for one of his short stories, so I can expose my students without boring myself in the process. After reading the Graphic Classics version The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, I have re-evaluated my prior loathing of Twain and the other "dead white males" I was forced to read (or pretend to read) in High School. I selected the Graphic Classic along with 7 others from the collection to read with my 10 year old daughter, who is a reluctant reader. Before cracking open a page, I warned my pre-teen "this is a boring boy book that girls are stuck reading" in school. My goal was to expose her to 19th century culture, specifically issues surrounding slavery.



The book was an excellent conversation starter. Sure, it still seemed "boyish" and difficult for a 21st century city kid to imagine skipping school and hanging out with strangers on a raft, but it opened up topics we had never discussed. Not only "slavery" which was my objective, but child abuse, social classes, death of a parent, geography (where does the Mississippi go?), and ethics (lying, stealing, abolition). Every picture opened up a new dialogue, espeically since the illustrations captured character emotions.



For all those kids "stuck" reading Twain, don't go to CliftNotes, SparkNotes, or any other summary site. Get Graphic Classics, because the themes in Huck Finn are timeless and the visuals remind the reader that Mark Twain isn't just another "dead white male" that we have to read; he's a historian, philosopher, and revolutionary.

[Bailey Wavrunek · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is about a young boy and the struggles he goes through. Huck, as he is called, and Tom Sawyer found a treasure chest full of gold. To protect his money, Judge Thatcher looked after Huck's share of the money. Tom and Huck started to play tricks on people, and even took Jim, the slave, hat, and hid it in a tree. When Huck's dad comes back after a year, he kidnaps Huck and takes him to an island. He takes Huck because he learns of the money that he has. Huck decides to fake his death, and run away from his father. When he is hiding in the woods, he runs into Jim. Jim and Huck decide to travel down the river on a raft and start a new life somewhere else. While they were floating down the river, they were hit by a steam boat. Huck went to the Grangerfords and they let him live there for a while. Huck went back to the raft to Jim, and these two men came up to them. The men were important people in the town of Pokeville. The men would put on a show about how they used to steal, but now they don't, and the people would give them money. They were robbing the town right in plain sight. Huck exposed them and donated all of the money. Jim was sold as a slave on the Phelps plantation, so Huck went to go and find him. When Huck went there he realized that it was his Aunts house, so Tom, Huck and Jim all ran away. Huck and Tom helped Jim escape. At the very end of the book, Jim tells Huck that he had killed his dad. Two things I liked about the book is that is was short and had pictures. One thing that I didn't like about the book was that it had a lot of events with little explanation. I would recommend this book to anyone who like graphic novels, and anyone who has read "Huckleberry Finn" the novel.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the graphic novel edition, retold by Tom Ratliff. It's no where NEAR as good as the real thing. It should have been considered impossible to retell Huck Finn in less than 50 pages. So many details left out; it's a travesty. It's more like a Cliff's Notes edition.

[Brianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wasn't as engaging as the other graphic novels I've read, but it was still interesting and enjoyable. Since I've never read the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (the actual classic) it was a great way to dive into the story.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great reading!!!

[Alsjem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another graphic novel to save me reading the original! Really enjoyed the story and it is suprisingly still relevant to this very day.