"A groundbreaking and controversial re-examination of our most beloved classic, Huckleberry Finn, proving that for more than 100 years we have misunderstood Twain's message on race and childhood--and the uncomfortable truths it still holds for modern America"--Provided by publisher.

Mark Twain's classic novel about the experiences of a boy who runs away from home with a fugitive slave is supplemented by extensive literary and historical commentary.

An introduction to the life and career of American author Mark Twain told in the voice of Huckleberry Finn, one of his most enduring characters.

From its first appearance onward, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been both praised and condemned, enshrined as one of the world’s great novels and banned from libraries and classrooms. This new edition is designed to enable modern readers to explore the sources of its greatness, and also to take a fresh, open-minded look at the source of the current controversy about its place in the canon: its representation of race and slavery. Based on the first American edition of 1885, this Broadview Edition includes all 174 original illustrations by E.W. Kemble. Appendices include contemporary reviews, passages deleted from the original manuscript, advertisements for the book, and a range of materials, from newspaper articles to minstrel show scripts to contemporary fiction, showing how race and slavery were depicted in the larger culture at the time.

Putting Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in historical context, connecting it to pivotal issues like slavery, class, money, and American economic expansion, this book engages readers by presenting American history through the lens of a great novel. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is widely regarded as a classic American novel—a groundbreaking one in which the author attempts to accurately portray society through the use of at-times coarse vernacular English. In this book, readers can experience the full text of Twain's Huckleberry Finn accompanied by annotations in footnote form throughout. As a result, this classic is transformed into a fascinating historical documentation of 19th-century American life and society that touches on topics like slavery, the transportation revolution, race, class, and confidence men. Bringing the perspective of a social and economic historian, Ranjit S. Dighe offers more than 150 annotations as well as supporting essays that put the characters, incidents, and settings of the book into their historical context. First-time readers get to experience a great American novel with memorable characters, vivid imagery, and a great narrative voice while simultaneously learning about American history; teachers and students who have read Huckleberry Finn before will enjoy re-reading it, especially with insightful annotations that connect the story to the historical timeline. This book exposes the subtle lessons Twain's tale has to teach us about America's growth, development, conflicts, and mass movements in the nation's first century.

When Huckleberry Finn (Huck) runs away from his abusive father with his companion, the runaway slave Jim, he begins a long and frequently interrupted expedition down the Mississippi River on a raft. During the journey Huck encounters a variety of characters through whom the book outstandingly portrays almost every social class living on or along the river. As a result of these experiences, Huck overcomes conventional racial prejudices and learns to respect and love Jim. The book is dotted throughout with idyllic descriptions of the river and the surrounding forests, and Huck’s good nature and unconscious humour shines through the pages. Through adventure after adventure runs a thread of human cruelty, which shows itself both in the acts of individuals and in their unthinking acceptance of such institutions as slavery. The natural goodness of Huck is continually contrasted with the effects of a corrupt society. Mark Twain was greatly inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's writings and Tom and Huck's relationship is by many compared to that of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) is the second book in the series of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), Tom Sawyer Abroad (1894) and Tom Sawyer, Detective (1896). Mark Twain, pseudonym of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, (1835-1910), was an American humorist, lecturer, journalist and novelist who acquired international fame for his adventure stories of boyhood, especially "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" and "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" as well as for his travel narratives, especially "The Innocents Abroad", "Roughing It", and "Life on the Mississippi". Twain transcended the apparent limitations of his origins to become a popular public figure and one of America’s most beloved writers.