Four Mark Twain Stories

Written by Mark Twain

Narrated by Deaver Brown

Mark Twain, America's acknowledged greatest writer of fiction, was a master of writing short stories as well as novels. Twain influence almost every subsequent American writer from Hemingway and Fitzgerald, to Cather and Robert Frost. These are four of his best short stories, starting with his most famous, The Notorious Frog, and including three of his other favorites: A True Story, Niagara, and The White Elephant. For students this is a wonderful lead into Twain's great novels, Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, and the brilliant but often overlooked Puddenhead Wilson. Bill DeWees, our professional narrator, has just the right American voice for these great American stories.

Keywords: Mark Twain, Mississippi, Rocky Mountains, author, Americana, Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Cather, Frost, Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, Puddenhead Wilson.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simply Magazine Inc.
• Release date: Oct 4, 2011
• ISBN: 9781614960508

Mark Twain

Mark Twain, who was born Samuel L. Clemens in Missouri in 1835, wrote some of the most enduring works of literature in the English language, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc was his last completed book—and, by his own estimate, his best. Its acquisition by Harper & Brothers allowed Twain to stave off bankruptcy. He died in 1910. 

Reviews for Four Mark Twain Stories

[sgerbic · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Reviewed March - August 2000 As the title tells us this is Mark Twain’s entire collection of short stories written between 1865 and 1916. Some of his stories are wonderfully funny and witty. “Mrs. McWilliams and the Lightening,” “A Stolen White Elephant,” “The Diary of Adam and Eve,” “The Joke that Made Ed’s Fortune,” and the one story that made me cry, “A Dogs Tale.” A few more stunk, “The Mysterious Stranger,” and “A Horse’s Tale.” Several themes seem to run through Twain’s stories...the common man and the trouble he can get into, as well as, “let me tell you about a friend of mine...” He also spends a lot of time with Christian themes, odd because he was an atheist, maybe these stories were commissioned, but if I read with keen eye I notice that he pokes fun at the humor of the ideals of religious people as in, “Was it Heaven? Or Hell?,” or “Extract from Cpt. Stormfield’s Visit to Heaven.” Twain much have spent much time sitting around and listening to people tell stories about themselves, all the while thinking of how he was going to immortalize him into a story some day. I think Twain would have been a political humorist in our time constantly ridiculing our government’s red tape. Who knows? Twain seems to be an insightful clever man who I think privately laughed at all of us.

[jbd1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Some of these are absolutely hysterical. They're not all great, but the vast majority are.

[blake.rosser · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A lot of material, and I chose to tackle it in chunks over a couple months because otherwise the stories got monotonous. There are some real gems among these 60: a hilarious lambast of Niagara tourism in "A Day at Niagara;" poking fun at feminine hysterics in "Experience of the McWilliamses with Membranous Croup;" a parody of justice and fairness in "Edward Mills and George Benton: A Tale;" and a comic dismantling of military honor in "Luck." I was particularly pleased with his later stories, as his pessimism and hostility toward mankind increased exponentially. "A Dog's Tale," "Extract from Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven," and the absolutely scathing "A Mysterious Stranger" are perhaps the best in the book, in large part because they stretch the bounds of Twain's traditional style.

[danielstj · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a great collection. Mark Twain's prowess with the written word is unparalleled during his period in American literature. The stories resonate with meaning, at times simplicity, power, originality, and perfected description and dialogue. Although there is certain padding in some, and others miss their mark, the overall collection is very strong and worth reading. The Mysterious Stranger, the final story in the collection, is my favorite.

4 stars-- well worth the read.