These adaptations are so poor that it is a disgrace for the original author's name to appear on the book; the old classic comic-book renditions had more integrity. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

No other American writer has been served so competently or so successfully in the publication of sound texts as has Samuel L. Clemens by the Mark Twain Project of the Bancroft Library of the University of California in Berkeley. Eleven volumes in the Mark Twain Papers are in print, and this is the eighth in the "Works of Mark Twain" series. Like the others, it is a model of modern textual scholarship, but it represents as well a special peak of accomplishment. Not only are we given the first soundly edited text of Twain's American masterpiece Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, produced by a team of editors headed by the dean of Twain scholars, Walter Blair, but a cornucopia of material to enlighten everyone about the origins and composition of the text, including illustrations, maps, explanatory notes, a glossary, textual notes, and five appendixes of such documentary material as the author's working notes, his revisions for public readings, and contemporary advertisements for the book's publication. Everything that scholars, students, and readers will ever want to know seems to be here. This and the other volumes are essential purchases for libraries of all levels. -M. T. Inge, Randolph-Macon College

Twain's classic novel describes the exploits of young Huckleberry Finn as he escapes his hometown and travels down the Mississippi River on a raft with escaped slave Jim. They encounter folks of all walks of life and repeatedly save one another from danger as they travel the American South. Eric G. Dove provides solid narration in this audio edition. Although his raspy, deep voice doesn't quite capture the youthful Huck and his naivete, Dove delivers a lively performance that boasts unique character voices and believable accents. And his pacing is perfect throughout: it's appropriate to the material and more than able to hold listener attention. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Gr 7 Up-Two American classics transport listeners to Twain's Missouri with the mischievous antics of Tom Sawyer and the less savory, but equally appealing, jaunts of Huckleberry Finn. With characters drawn from his hometown, Twain's tales reveal the 19th-century culture, yet remain current. The boys' conquests range from Tom saving himself and his delicate sweetheart from a deep cave to Huck rafting down the Mississippi with a runaway slave and two con men. While far from perfect, the titular teens are never mean-spirited, and their misbehavior is often humorous. Narrator Eric G. Dove takes on roles from sweet, young Becky Thatcher to mean Injun Joe with clear dialect and country accents. This high-quality sound recording is a natural way to introduce Twain to students with one caution: the N-word, common in that era, is found in both novels. These recordings are useful additions to middle and high school libraries and solid components in any public library collection.-Barbara Wysocki, Cora J. Belden Library, Rocky Hill, CT (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

The editors of this handsome volume have produced the first completely accurate edition of Huckleberry Finn by restoring the book's dialects as ``pains-takingly'' as Twain wrote them. This is an impressive scholarly achievement, but documenting the massive effort made to correct the text consumes nearly 200 pages. The editors' decision to restore the ``raft episode'' (removed by Twain and placed in Life on the Mississippi ) is questionable, for the interpolated tale lacks the power of the familiar episodes and serves to dilute the dramatic tension. Blair's introduction provides an enlightening examination of seven years of influences on the novel, and Fischer's textual history will interest scholars and informed laypersons.-- Frank Pisano, Pennsylvania State Univ., University Park (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Gr. 7-10. Generations have enjoyed this robust, insightful story, which has been the basis for several movies, the Broadway musical Big River, and featured recently on public television.