Historical Fiction
Biography

Sam Clemens is an adventurer, who is silly and occasionally a trouble-maker.
He is a writer for the newspaper.
He boards a steamboat and wrote about life. He took the author name of "Mark Twain".
Libraries are dedicated to Mark Twain

Most people probably have a pretty good idea who Mark Twain is, but this did a pretty good job of keeping his story simple and interesting. I really would love to visit that 19 room house in Connecticut. It sounds very interesting. ( )

River Boy: The Story of Mark Twain is quick exposition of the life and career of Mark Twain. Aimed at elementary readers, it is a straightforward tale that develops the idea of a river boy. The term 'river boy' calls to mind a free spirit; a boy impetuous, wild and fun. William Anderson, the book's author, highlights this aspect of Twain's personality throughout the book. From Twain's tomfoolery as a youth to his wanderlust as an adult, Anderson tells of a life of adventure. Anderson also paints Twain as a good-hearted, fun-loving gentelman by mentioning the American public's warm response to Twain and his "hilarious" lectures. Even the illustrations by Dan Andeasen make Twain look like a thin, adorable Santa Clause. Finally, emphasizing the 'boy' facet of Twain's persona, the readers learn that Livy, Twain's wife, often referred to him as "youth" due to Twain's boy-like behavior.
The illustrations in the book are beautiful, especially the illustrator's use of light; there is an illumination that radiates from the faces of the subjects. In what I assume to be watercolors, lovely scenes are painted of a young Samuel evolving into the very styilistic icon of Mark Twain. My favorite illustration is an entire page of portrait. The lion's mane of white hair, silver tusk-like mustache, impecible white suit and a cigar slowly burning, its smoke whispily floating across Twain's body is a visual ode to the beloved author.
There is a timeline in the back of the book, set against the background of the Mississippi River and steam riverboat. Overall the book was well-organized except the need to force the passing of a comet into the story. The book open with a general statement about the Mississippi River and Twain. Next, there is a description of Twain's parents, accompanied by an illustration of a eight or nine year old Twain. Then a random backtrack occurs in which we go back to the day Twain is born, after which we progress through life in a chronological manner. However, the comet reappears in teh last page, at Twain's his death. I understand how it is tempting to begin and end a life with this rare event: a rare comet sighting at a person's birth and death serves well as a narrative book mark. However, it has little to do with the 'river boy' theme Anderson is trying to establish. In fact, the comet's first appearence is on the third page, whereas the first is dedicated to the topic of the river. It seems as though it would have been more fitting to end the stroy in a river way. ( )

This short book tells the life of Mark twain and even connects some of his great story characters to his own life ( )

Mark Twain's varied and adventure-filled life is captured in this picture book. Mark Twain's life unfolds before us as we watch him grow from a mischievous youth to storytelling adult. ( )