Autobiography of Mark Twain, Volume 1: The Complete and Authoritative Edition Audiobook (Unabridged)

" I was disappointed in this book--and ended up only skimming it. It begins with a lengthy introduction and then to previous attempts at autobiographies and then finally on page 200, begins this dictated autobiography. Some entries were amusing, some boring and the rest in-between. I had hoped for it to be quite amusing. "

" I listened to this on audio. The first hour or more was an academic discussion of how the book came about. This is quite dry, but I learned that many of the stories presented here had previously been published in the earlier Neider-edited Autobiography which I had already read and enjoyed. I also learned that this autobiography would consist of snippets of writing that had been done over many years by Twain (and other writings he had added, such as letters), with somewhat random order of events, and interspersed discussion of the events at the time of his writing. Twain's writing, when I finally got to it on the audio, was as humorous and entertaining as always. But I really would have liked it more with some kind of order and self editing. If you are looking for the telling of Twain's life in a traditional biographic manner, go back to the earlier Autobiography -- one that involved an editor. If you would like to read something that could more easily have been called "Collected Musings and Diary Essays" by Twain this would work. This read like an extended discussion with someone who can't keep their mind on a single topic for very long. Note that the audio does not include the copious notes at the end of the book -- this amounted to a large number of pages in the book (more than a quarter, i believe) that you don't have with the audio. Not that that's a bad thing... "

" Interesting how he skips back and forth over his life, nothing sequential. Reminds me of Billy Pilgim being unstuck in time in Vonnegut's book. When will the next volume come out? "

" A great story teller. You do not want to be on his black list. "

" Certainly has its moments, but its moments were things I'd seen excerpted before elsewhere. The rest is rather boring. "

" I'm going to have to agree with Garrison Keillor's review in the NYTs: the book is disappointing. And I'm one of the scholars against which Keillor warns us, so I should be part of the boring conspiracy brigade. It's not that the autobiography is unwelcome, or that it's not useful... but the presentation of the autobiography buries any interest value for all but the most dedicated Twain scholar. It is an interesting collection of vignettes--an anecdote about Horace Greeley here, a slam on President (Theodore) Roosevelt there--but these gems are mired in other fundamental problems of this collection, nonetheleast of which is the the overall presentation of the book, which, at a door-stopping 750 million pounds and 750 pages, suffers from an overabundance. What to do with these random scraps of Twain's life? The answer from Cal Press has been to present them as a coherent autobiography, which, of course, was Twain's own intention. But coherent (maybe the word I'm looking for is cohesive) this text is not. It's telling that Twain himself stopped and started the project multiple times, unable to settle on one form, one way of telling his story, one secretary to which to tell it, etc. You get that sense, that this is a patchwork piece, one without a coherent center. Which means that the interesting snap-shots of Twain's life (and many of the boring ones included as well) are left as just that: unconnected snapshots, or moments without a whole lot of meaning. I need to say, too, that this book fundamentally suffers from its over-intrusive (over-enthusiastic) editors. The actual text of the autobiography pales in comparison to the lengthy (I'm going to go ahead and say it: long-winded) introduction and the mind-bogglingly huge section of explanatory notes. Look, I'm an academic who LOVES explanatory notes beyond all reason. But these notes do little to add, and much to distract. Bad endnote. No biscut. So, there you go. I think I'll probably forgo numbers 2 and 3, except to flip through the index to see what pops up that might be interesting to read... and that seems to me to be the best way to approach this autobiography--reading select bits in isolation. I'm giving it three stars for the sheer amount of archival work that went into it. And because those digs at Roosevelt were pretty funny. "

" If you like Mark Twain's writing then you should like this. I have found it a fun read and picked up some great quotes along the way. "

" Wow!!! So so boring. Didn't even finish it. Everytime I picked it up I fell asleep. He wad full of himself and wrote stream of consciousness which totally bugged. Don't waste your time!! "

" The Reader's Edition is a must read for almost everyone who ever enjoyed this author. The 'Complete' edition with a lot of additional material from the editor is probably not for everyone. "

" Enormous, tiny print. Some really hilarious stories. Now if only I can find my reading glasses so I can read some more of it. "

" This book is enormous and could do serious damage to one's wrists while trying to hold it, so it would be a good idea to get it as an ebook. Interesting book. "

" Disappointed at the degree of tedium. I could not finish it. "

" Fascinating, although at times tedious. It makes me weep for the modern English language. It seems to me that by and large people who lived one hundred years ago were far more eloquent than we are. Still, an interesting look at the life of the gifted humorist. "

" An outstanding collection of what would have been Mark Twain's autobiography. I cannot wait for the next volume. "

" No lo termine, no hera lo que yo esperaba. It was not what I was expecting to read, was not able to get into it, maybe because I am not a fan and could not relate. I tried, though! "

" A collection of anecdotes and notes mostly. I was most intrigued about his life in the west. "

" A little teadius and long. "

" What an odd and interesting compilation of writings. Not really "autobiographical" in the typical sense - more like spending some time with a rambling SLC. "

" Mark Twain--such a great writer--love his style and wit. "

" The first part was a bit dry, a description of the process of collating the autobiography. But once you got over the nature of the book it was, for all Samuel Clemens fans worthwile. "

" I love Mark Twain's voice! He can tell the most mundane story in such a wonderful way. I can almost hear his Missouri-lilt and see him rocking back in a chair, with a cigar in hand as I read the stories of his life. "

" Got through it with a mix of listening and reading. Some parts are great, other parts are less than great. If only he live long enough to edit it. I can't believe there is another volume. "

" Fascinating. Waiting for vol 2 "

" Too much scholarship, too many footnotes and not enough Twain. "

" Wonderfully entertaining. Skip the first 100 pages and get right to the biography. "

" Tried to listen to all 20 audio CD's. Whoa. Twain overload- and there are two more volumes. He has interesting insight into his contemporaries. I loved the description of Grant. I will buy the hardcover version and dip into it as I revisit 19th century literature. "

" Sometimes amusing, mostly boring. "

" Long. Authoritative. Includes much that was previously available. For someone who is obsessed with Twain, I'm sure it would be a treasure trove. But for the casual fan, such as myself, it frankly a bit too much. "