NOVEMBER 2009 - AudioFile
This collection of unpublished essays and stories is a real find for Twain lovers; even the pieces left incomplete are amusing. John Lithgow doesn't make the mistake of trying to imitate or channel Twain, à la Hal Holbrook. On the other hand, he doesn't quite have the cadence or lilt or tone that would fit Twain; there's something too dry or stiff or abstract about his reading. Still, it's clear, energetic, and well paced, and his comedic timing is (no surprise) excellent. He brings out, subtly but plainly, Twain's use of irony, exasperated satire, and joshing. He shines when there are characters to play, though one piece, in "black" dialect, is rather painful. Overall, a fine reading of a batch of hidden treasures. W.M. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine
From the Publisher
Who Is Mark Twain? is a refreshing reintroduction to both [Twain’s] critical analytical thought and his playful sense of humor.” — Los Angeles Times
“Twain’s wit and lethally precise powers of description are on full display.” — Maud Newton
“More than 100 years after [Twain] wrote these stories, they remain not only remarkably funny but remarkably modern….Ninety-nine years after his death, Twain still manages to get the last laugh.” — Vanity Fair
“[Twain] was, in the phrase of his friend William Dean Howells, ‘the Lincoln of our literature’. . . . At the heart of his work lies that greatest of all American qualities: irreverence.” — Washington Post
“As funny and insightful as any of [Twain’s] published and well-known works, these essays take on the federal government, religion, race, fame, and even the literary canon with a sharp-eyed clarity we can chuckle over as we read while feeling uncomfortable knowing that they feel all too contemporary.” — Walter Mosley
Walter Mosley
As funny and insightful as any of [Twain’s] published and well-known works, these essays take on the federal government, religion, race, fame, and even the literary canon with a sharp-eyed clarity we can chuckle over as we read while feeling uncomfortable knowing that they feel all too contemporary.
Maud Newton
Twain’s wit and lethally precise powers of description are on full display.
Vanity Fair
More than 100 years after [Twain] wrote these stories, they remain not only remarkably funny but remarkably modern….Ninety-nine years after his death, Twain still manages to get the last laugh.
|Los Angeles Times
Who Is Mark Twain? is a refreshing reintroduction to both [Twain’s] critical analytical thought and his playful sense of humor.
Washington Post
[Twain] was, in the phrase of his friend William Dean Howells, ‘the Lincoln of our literature’. . . . At the heart of his work lies that greatest of all American qualities: irreverence.
Los Angeles Times
Who Is Mark Twain? is a refreshing reintroduction to both [Twain’s] critical analytical thought and his playful sense of humor.
Washington Post
[Twain] was, in the phrase of his friend William Dean Howells, ‘the Lincoln of our literature’. . . . At the heart of his work lies that greatest of all American qualities: irreverence.
NOVEMBER 2009 - AudioFile
This collection of unpublished essays and stories is a real find for Twain lovers; even the pieces left incomplete are amusing. John Lithgow doesn't make the mistake of trying to imitate or channel Twain, à la Hal Holbrook. On the other hand, he doesn't quite have the cadence or lilt or tone that would fit Twain; there's something too dry or stiff or abstract about his reading. Still, it's clear, energetic, and well paced, and his comedic timing is (no surprise) excellent. He brings out, subtly but plainly, Twain's use of irony, exasperated satire, and joshing. He shines when there are characters to play, though one piece, in "black" dialect, is rather painful. Overall, a fine reading of a batch of hidden treasures. W.M. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine
