Well Lookie ‘ere, It’s Huck Finn.

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When it comes to good entertainment there isn’t anything better than a good old Mark Twain classic. ‘Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’ (AoHF) has been the quintessential American novel to many people and quite rightly so too. Mark Twain’s funny yet compelling story telling that’s rooted in innocent exuberance, superstitions, socio-racial relations, conniving and stereotypical ignorance were always the main draw and sometimes controversial one at that as well. But that’s the attraction wasn’t it? He was brave and said and wrote things plainly which was what drew his readers to his work. I definitely was one.

Anyway, just like the book’s prequel ‘Adventures of Tom Sawyer‘ (AoTS), AoHF did not disappoint. Although the dangers met in the adventures here were somewhat more adult oriented than in AoTS to begin with, Mark Twain ensured no harm came to the lead characters, Huck Finn and his negro slave friend, Jim. I thoroughly enjoyed the ride nevertheless. Adding mercurial, Tom Sawyer to the mix towards the end chapters of this ‘adventure’ was a total surprise and I almost jumped with glee when he made his entrance! This crucial element alone made the AoHF well worth the money I say.

Needless to add, this is a book that schools, book clubs, literary experts and so forth have dissected and discussed from cover to brim. And so, it’s redundant for me to tell you more about it here. If you haven’t read it yet (until now like me) then I urge that you do, because for one, this book is a period-piece. It was first published in 1884 in pre-civil war America when slavery and prejudice were still very much the order of the day. Twain wrote this story along with his other ‘adventure’ series during a time when America was ripe for a revolution and gained it’s identity as we know it today. I think that’s why he is so highly regarded and why his books, especially this particular one has been and will continue remaining as an American classic; for it captures the youthful drive and energy of the young with abundance of imagination and creativity – just like what the young nation was growing into at that very period I suppose.

Overall, this is a storybook that’s worth several reads in your lifetime and still make you smile and laugh after each one. “By and by Mr Twain. That’s a real nice tale you wrote for us. Much obliged indeed“.

View all my reviews

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