He was Sam Clemens; steamboat pilot; before he was Mark Twain; famous author. His better-known name originated with the lingo of navigation; and much of his writing was informed by his shipboard adventures on one of the world's great rivers. In this classic of American literature; Twain offers lively recollections ranging from his salad days as a novice pilot to views from the passenger deck in the twilight of the river culture’s heyday.Under the tutelage of the most celebrated pilot on the Mississippi; young Twain acquires the skills to navigate a constantly changing riverscape; avoiding potential collisions with other boats and traversing winding channels in the dead of night. The vivid and ever-engaging narrative encompasses tales of riverside town feuds; the professional vicissitudes of a riverboat gambler; dramatic accounts of life in Vicksburg as the city lay under siege during the Civil War; and many other scenes from a now-vanished way of life. These antebellum visions take on a bittersweet cast with the author's postwar return to the region; when railroad competition has largely doomed the commercial steamboat and the old ways of life are passing into history.A testimonial to Twain's repute as the most popular humorist of his day; these reminiscences crackle with comic anecdotes and energetic witticisms. Engrossing and entertaining; this volume will captivate devotees of Twain; steamboat buffs; lovers of Americana; and students of American literature.
#167617 in Books Dover Publications 2000-05 1956-06-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.50 x 5.50 x 1.00l; 1.10 #File Name: 0486203514414 pagesGreat product!
Review
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. Great Book; poor Kindle implementationBy Gregg D. ArmstrongAfter further trying to use the Kindle version of The Guide I have decided that it is just unusable. The entire book is one long unbroken stream of text. The beginnings of chapters aren't highlighted or separated using line breaks. Even footnotes are embedded right in with the text. Unfortunately won't let me change my original star ranking. But I'd rate this implementation as one star. I needn't emphasize that his is a great book. Also; I have no problem with the dated 100-plus year old style of the translation. It is the implementation for the Kindle that leaves much to be desired. There is no active table of contents. This makes navigation very difficult. I started reading after finally finding the beginning of the text after paging through page after page of the inactive TOC. Then my Kindle "hiccupped" and restarted itself at the home page. I was not amused at having to page through the same inactive TOC to find the text that I had been reading. I would be much more putout if I had spent a lot of money for it. At $0.99 it is still worthwhile buying. Just remember that you will have to take the time to put in your own navigation bookmarks.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Daniel J. HinnebuschThis a very complex book written in the most biblically educated way!2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Rationalist-Philosophical not the Mystical-Cabbalistic approachBy CCCThe Rambam ( Rav Moshe ben Maimon; Maimonides) is a must read for anyone trying to understand and have a fuller vision of the Jewish frame of mind. His rational approach is automatically contrasted by the Cabbalistic outlook; which makes for a very deep reading.
