| Product: |
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain |
| Date: |
16.03.08 (152 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Quite simply a book that should not go unread
Disadvantages: Not really a childrens book as quite often percieved
Huckleberry Finn
Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn has always been widely acclaimed as the first great American novel. Quite often Huckleberry Finn has been seen as somewhat of a children's book by people who have not read it in the past, however, this is most defiantly a misconception. True, the adventures in the book are appealing to a younger audience as they are exiting and fun, but the book deals with many serious issues from the 19th century. The book has been banned numerous times from schools and public libraries in the past in the States for various different reasons. More recently it was banned for it's continual use of the word 'nigger' and was said to be racist. This however is surely taking things too far. Although it may appear racist it was wrote in 19th century America and back then was seen much in the way of a threat through its anti-slavery nature.
But enough about that and more about the book itself! Well Twain wrote this book to follow on from his Tom Sawyer novels. However, if you've read Tom Sawyer in the past don't be fooled into thinking it's like them, as it most defiantly is not. The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer are written for children, whereas as I said, this is not. The book begins with the money Tom and Huck had found previously, 6000 dollars. Huck's drunk dad takes a great interest in this money and adopts Huck in order to get his hands on the money. However, Huck isn't about to hang around with his abusive drunken father. He sets about faking his own death and then setting out down the Mississippi river on a raft where he meets Jim, a runaway slave.
Jim is a very important character in the novel and how he is portrayed by Twain is just as important too. To start Huck simply sees Jim as someone's property and we see him struggle with his conscience helping Jim escape. Though as the book progresses, Huck's views change and they both form a bond. Jim is transformed from a slave into a man, and one of the most respectable and honest men in the book for that matter. It's not hard to see why this would have caused controversy in the 19th century.
The book gives an excellent insight into 19th century American life and what's more is a very interesting and fun read. I'd recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good adventure story, or a book that places you in a past world far from our own. I'd also strongly recommend this book to anyone studying American history, or history in general for that matter, as it's insight into slavery is excellent.
This book can also be bought in a 'penguin popular classics' edition from many good retailers for only 2 Pound (E.g. Amazon.co.uk).
Other Books you may be interested in:
The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer - Amazon.co.uk £2.00
Summary: A brilliant adventure story that takes you back to 19th century America unlike any other novel
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