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A Murder, a Mystery, and a Marriage Audiobook
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(3.03) - 413 listener ratings
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"Upon the border of a remote and out-of-the-way village in south-western Missouri lived an old farmer named John Gray..."In 1876, the same year The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was published, Mark Twain wrote a story for The Atlantic Monthly. He meant it as a "blind novelette"--a challenge to other writers to submit their own ending of the story in a national competition. Twain asked his editor at The Atlantic to request submissions from leading authors of the day, including Henry James.Perhaps because few writers could write as well as Twain, no one responded, and Twain's original complete manuscript languished in literary hibernation. It was rediscovered in 1995 and will appear in The Atlantic Monthly in summer 2001, having come full circle. Set in the fictional town of Deer Lick, Missouri, A Murder, a Mystery, and a Marriage chronicles the fortunes of a farmer determined to have his daughter marry the son of a wealthy man. It's a charming story in the Twain tradition and a delightful addition to his legacy.
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"I really enjoyed Mark Twain's (as he called it) "Blindfold Novelette". An interesting idea to share a skeletal outline for a story with other known authors of that time and then get together to exchange ideas and inspirations too bad that it never seemed to have went anywhere. Also a wonderful American history lesson by Roy Blount, Jr. included!"
— Melana (4 out of 5 stars)
A Murder, a Mystery, and a Marriage Listener Reviews
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" Meh. It was pretty good I guess. "
— Ashley, 2/20/2014 -
" While the story was not all that exciting for me, I find that I am drawn to the gimicky stuff this was designed to elicit and never did. The essential premise was that several authors of Twain's time would write a novelette based on the same plot premise of a murder, a mystery and a marriage. Twain is the only one who ever wrote it. The resolution of the murder was predictable. The solution of the mystery was wholly unexpected by this reader - a bit far fetched, but wholly unexpected. The commentary at the end attempts to explain the solution of the mystery but it remains a bit unclear to me. "
— Linda, 1/30/2014 -
" This is one of those post-humously published things that gets people all excited and then let down. Yeah, it's a fun read. Yeah, it sounds like good old Twain and that's nice. But it's the tiniest tease of a morsel! If it had been released while he was alive it would only be published now in compilations of his shorter works and not draw much attention to itself. After reading this I went and reread some of his old hat stuff and was thus satisfied. "
— Tara, 1/7/2014 -
" ... a long-form shaggy dog story looking for a more lethal punch-line .... :) "
— Jim, 12/27/2013 -
" Amusing short story and the book had some interesting background on Twain in the afterword. "
— Diane, 12/19/2013 -
" I had never heard of this story by Mark Twain. It was interesting to read and also the extra background about the story and the interaction between various authors of that day. "
— Julie, 12/18/2013 -
" The story behind the story was probably more impressive than the actual(short) piece, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. "
— Riley, 12/13/2013 -
" this was a fun read. "
— Mike, 9/2/2013 -
" I adore the illustrations! I would love to hang them on my wall. :) "
— Naomi, 8/25/2013 -
" Fun premise: a call to fellow writers to create a short that must have a marriage and a murder. Too bad no one answered the challenge! "
— Nancy, 7/28/2013 -
" Short and funny. Just the way I like them. The Forward and Afterward bring tons of insight, and in themselves are interesting. Along with the charming illustrations are pictures of pages from Twain's original manuscript. Just a fun book. "
— Sharon, 5/4/2013 -
" An entertaining short novel. This was originally intended to be a composite novel written by the literary giants of the time, but only Twain contributed. "
— Ellen, 2/18/2013 -
" Very funny, yet in a tragic way. "
— Rehneniah, 12/5/2012 -
" It was good, but not great. It was a bit predictable, but I still enjoyed the interesting story. I would recommend this because it's a short, easy, and fun book. "
— Emma, 10/28/2012 -
" 5 Stars for the surprise ending. "
— Lori, 10/24/2012 -
" Silly and enjoyable - as most of Twain's material :) "
— Clara, 7/27/2012 -
" A fun, short book. "
— Elizabeth, 4/8/2012 -
" Found this randomly one day while working at the HCMPLibrary and was intrigued by the cover and title. I can't remember all the details. It wasn't great or memorable, but it was entertaining and the illustrations were fun. "
— Lynn, 2/24/2012 -
" The ending is happy enough, but it seems like outsiders are not to be trusted. "
— Beth, 10/16/2011 -
" I love how Twain can spin a story and in this short book he takes a surprising twist at the end and involves another writer of his time, showing his wit can be sharp and biting. A fun read that has a moral and I love happy endings (nobody liked the guy who got killed anyway). "
— Cyndi, 8/18/2011 -
" Unknown Twain! I liked it already and was not disappointed in this tale that points toward a more acerbic Twain to come. His ability to pack meaning into his aw shucks stories is as powerful as ever. At stake here is the struggle between greed and conscience. "
— Lemar, 6/6/2011 -
" I lied, not too fond of the story, but the illustrations, done by the amazing Peter de Seve are just beautiful, beautiful! "
— Admira, 3/30/2011 -
" Unknown Twain! I liked it already and was not disappointed in this tale that points toward a more acerbic Twain to come. His ability to pack meaning into his aw shucks stories is as powerful as ever. At stake here is the struggle between greed and conscience. "
— Lemar, 3/24/2011 -
" It was good, but not great. It was a bit predictable, but I still enjoyed the interesting story. I would recommend this because it's a short, easy, and fun book. "
— Emma, 1/8/2011 -
" Dizer coisas para as crianças de forma que os adultos enxerguem além disso. Ótima novela by Twain. "
— Freak, 1/8/2011 -
" An entertaining short novel. This was originally intended to be a composite novel written by the literary giants of the time, but only Twain contributed. "
— Ellen, 12/29/2010 -
" I <strong>adore</strong> the illustrations! I would love to hang them on my wall. :) "
— Naomi, 11/3/2010 -
" It's great so far. Funny and compelling. "
— Bob, 10/6/2010 -
" Amusing short story and the book had some interesting background on Twain in the afterword. "
— Diane, 9/30/2010 -
" I had never heard of this story by Mark Twain. It was interesting to read and also the extra background about the story and the interaction between various authors of that day. "
— Julie, 4/27/2010 -
" I love this book and own it "
— Books4m, 4/14/2010 -
" I didn't think the story progressed very smooth. Not one of Twain's best works. "
— Melissa, 8/5/2009 -
" It's not a book, it's a story. But it's cute and charming. "
— Sharon, 6/9/2009 -
" Found this randomly one day while working at the HCMPLibrary and was intrigued by the cover and title. I can't remember all the details. It wasn't great or memorable, but it was entertaining and the illustrations were fun. "
— Lynn, 5/11/2009 -
" Fun, entertaining, quick read. I always liked Mark Twain. "
— Jen, 1/28/2009
About Mark Twain
Mark Twain, pseudonym of Samuel L. Clemens (1835–1910), was born in Florida, Missouri, and grew up in Hannibal on the west bank of the Mississippi River. He attended school briefly and then at age thirteen became a full-time apprentice to a local printer. When his older brother Orion established the Hannibal Journal, Samuel became a compositor for that paper and then, for a time, an itinerant printer. With a commission to write comic travel letters, he traveled down the Mississippi. Smitten with the riverboat life, he signed on as an apprentice to a steamboat pilot. After 1859, he became a licensed pilot, but two years later the Civil War put an end to the steam-boat traffic.
In 1861, he and his brother traveled to the Nevada Territory where Samuel became a writer for the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise, and there, on February 3, 1863, he signed a humorous account with the pseudonym Mark Twain. The name was a river man’s term for water “two fathoms deep” and thus just barely safe for navigation.
In 1870 Twain married and moved with his wife to Hartford, Connecticut. He became a highly successful lecturer in the United States and England, and he continued to write.
About the Narrators
Roy Blount Jr. is an American writer. Best known as a humorist, Blount is also a reporter, actor, and musician with the Rock Bottom Remainders, a rock band composed entirely of writers. He is also president of the Authors Guild.
Garrison Keillor is America’s favorite storyteller. For more than forty years, as the host of A Prairie Home Companion, he has captivated millions of listeners with his weekly News from Lake Wobegon monologues. A Prairie Home Companion is heard on hundreds of public radio stations, as well as America One, the Armed Forces Networks, Sirius Satellite Radio, and via a live audio webcast. Keillor is also the author of several books and a frequent contributor to national publications including Time, the New Yorker, and National Geographic, in addition to writing his own syndicated column. He has been awarded a National Humanities Medal from the National Endowment of the Humanities. He is the winner of nine AudioFile Earphones Awards, several of which were for his own books. When not touring, he resides in St. Paul, Minnesota.