The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Dover Thrift Editions: Classic Novels)

I personally have really enjoyed The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. The book is a classic, and enjoyable for readers of all ages. Mr. Twain makes that very clear in his preface (included at the beginning of this copy) along with some background information under the “Note” column before the preface. This book has a variety of genres such as: picaresque, somewhat of a Bildungsroman, comedy, satire, and lastly a folk narrative. It is considered a picaresque and/or Bildungsroman because of Tom’s actions and growth throughout the book. It is comical because of the way that Mark Twain describes Tom’s mischievous and rebellious nature. It includes satire when Tom gets a crush on the new girl. Finally, it is a folk narrative because of the American traditions demonstrated in the way that Tom and all others live. Like their manners, way of speaking, and cultural traditions like going to church on Sundays etc. This copy of the book that I have bought for myself was at a hard to beat price. The text is a bit close together, but on the plus side, the chapters are shorter and so is the book. So it’s not bad for saving paper if you don’t need a fancy copy. I would recommend this copy for personal use, because at that price point you really shouldn’t feel bad for taking notes on it, if you want to. I personally have annotated this book just to analyze the text and gain better understanding. Also this book, not just this copy but The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is written in some dense English. By this I mean that there are some phrases or words that you might need to search on the internet just because they aren’t used nowadays. This book was first ever published in 1876 so that does explain why the Language is dense. Also, many classic books, since they are classics are written in dense language. I would definitely recommend this book because it truly is an adventure haha. This copy that I have purchased (Dover Thrift Editions) was published in 1998. It has 184 pages including the conclusion.

If you think I’m going to write a review of one of the greatest writers of all time, you’re sadly mistaken. I will say that I read this as a 71 year old and enjoyed it immensely.

Minus the use of politically incorrect terms, the book is a great read. A little slow to start, but builds up as the story unfolds and keeps your interest until the end. Read with my 11 year olds.

Needed it for my son's class and it came very quickly and arrived exactly as expected.

I became interested in this book after having read James, the updated story of Huck and Jim floating down the river toward many misadventures and escapades. Well worth turning back the clock to read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. I recommend it.

As expected clean copy

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer kind of reads like eating a loaf of white bread, moderately stale. Initially it has charm, and the prose is at least coherent (in the same way that white bread is edible). Then I think, somewhere beyond a quarter of the way through, the prose began to get tedious and uninspired; too much telling instead of showing; as if Twain just wanted to finish the book.Obviously this novel was written over a hundred years ago, and styles and preferences and prose change, and I think if you’re a serious reader it’s worth the read. But, in regards to coming-of-age stories, there are “better written,” more engaging stories. The Harry Potter series comes to mind, as well as Robert McCammon’s masterpiece, Boy’s Life (which clearly drew influences from TAOTS). Even Craig Davidson’s The Saturday Night Ghost Club (which I didn’t necessarily love) I would recommend over this, in regards to engagement.It’s not bad. It’s not even terribly dated. The prose is coherent (like I said), but perhaps it’s so coherent that it’s predictable at best, and a bore to read at worst.However, I think Tom Sawyer—as a story—has a lot to say about Human Nature and how good moral foundations (such as Aunt Polly’s Christianity) is infectious to even the wildest, most rebellious children; and that, because of the difficult legwork that was put into his upbringing by his aunt, Tom Sawyer couldn’t help but be compelled to do what was objectively right. That seems like an honest statement about self-responsibility that is refreshingly untainted by modern literature’s postmodernism.

I remember as a boy how we’d have adventures in the woods around our neighborhood and fishing in the lake nearby. The childhood romance of Tom and Becky reminded me of the one I had so many years ago. Enjoyed every moment of this novel.