A wide-eyed teenager during most of the Revolutionary War; Joseph Plumb Martin left his grandfather's farm in Connecticut in 1775 and spent much of the next eight years with the Continental Army; crisscrossing the mid-Atlantic states and returning north after the British surrender at Yorktown. His notes; penned when he was seventy; recount in grim detail his harrowing experiences during the conflict — the staggering losses in human life; the agony of long marches; constant gnawing hunger; bitter cold; and the fear of battle; as well as a warts-and-all view of military leaders. Balancing these brutal wartime experiences are lively accounts of hunting; fishing; and other diversions--including an occasional encounter with a "saucy miss."The fullest existing description of the Revolutionary War by an enlisted man; and a rediscovered gem of American history; Martin's recollections brim with telling anecdotes that reveal a great deal about American life during this era. An invaluable memoir from an ordinary man in extraordinary times; the narrative is "one of the best firsthand accounts of war as seen by a private soldier." — St. Louis (Mo.) Post-Dispatch
#368608 in Books 2000-12-21 2000-12-21Format: UnabridgedOriginal language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.36 x .73 x 5.18l; .49 #File Name: 0486414264304 pages
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Life on the Mississippi; he told it like it was....By SusanMark Twain was an incredible character; a fine part of America's colorful past. He spent his youth on the Mississippi; from whence came Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn; two of our literary immortals Who among us doesn't recall the fence-painting episode in Tom Sawyer? I read it two generations ago and will teach the lesson to my grandchildren pretty soon. Twain (as Samuel L. Clemens) trained to be a riverboat pilot on the Big Muddy; and his stories of that time of his youth are captured in Life on the Mississippi. Piloting was dangerous and exacting work; and in its heyday was every bit as romantic as that of cowboys or test pilots or any other macho endeavor. Alas; with time; the profession died and the river was plied by ugly cousins of the riverboats; but Twain's memoir survives. Twain's folksy humor still ripples from the pages; we can picture the rough crowd he ran with; fellows who probably bathed once a month whether they needed it or not. Yes; there were times I laughed out loud at their antics. I certainly developed a respect for the men who knew every bend; every rock; and every tree along the river they plied with cargo and passengers; their tall tales only made the adventure more fun. Highly recommended for a satisfying read.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Slow read...a little boringBy CDKA little boring with all of the details of the Mississippi River. Don't know where many of the features are. I toughed through it; though.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Wonderful; Classic Twain !!By 5/0"Life on the Mississippi" by Mark Twain (aka Samuel Clemens) is; in effect; a National Treasure just as surely as are Independence Hall or the battlefield at Gettysburg. Twain's amazing degree of perception of; and attunement with; the essence of Humanity is on ample display in "Life on the Mississippi" and readers even in this generation nearly 150 year hence will see and feel the almost eerie connection Twain achieved with the eternal Humanity in all of us. Add to that the fact that Twain's "Life on the Mississippi" is an exquisitely-crafted; often-poignant; oftener humorous panorama of a gorgeous part of our country during a truly wondrous and kaleidoscopic era of our national journey. Well before the reader finishes "Life on the Mississippi" they will know why Mark Twain is often spoken of as the "Voice of America itself" and considered among the very greatest storytellers in all of History. Selecting the "Best" or the "Most Enjoyable" of Mark Twain's many; many writings would be a task as hopeless as picking the prettiest photograph ever taken anywhere along the Mississippi River. But "Life on the Mississippi" would surely be among The Top Ten contenders.
