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The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Audiobook
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(3.92) - 36 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Who could forget the pranks, the adventures, the sheer fun of Tom Sawyer? From Tom’s sly trickery with the whitewashed fence to his and Becky Thatcher’s calamities in Bat Cave, the enjoyment never ends.
Just what did boys do in a small town during the mid-1800s, a time when there were no televisions, no arcades, and no videos? They whitewashed fences, floated down rivers, traded marbles, formed secret societies, smoked pipes, and, on occasion, managed to attend their own funerals. Yes, they may have been a bit mischievous, but as Aunt Polly said of Tom when she believed him to be dead, “He was the best-hearted boy that ever was.” Aunt Polly’s sentiments reveal one of Mark Twain’s cardinal philosophies: In this deceitful and infirm world, innocence can be found only in the heart of a boy.
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a humorous and nostalgic book depicting the carefree days of boyhood in a small Midwestern town. The characters are based on Twain’s schoolmates and the town, Hannibal, Missouri, is where Twain grew up.
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"I read this recently as part of the anthology of Twain's novels. I liked it overall -- in some ways it is better than The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn even though I like the character of Tom Sawyer less than Huck. It was nostalgic to me in a couple of ways -- I read it before long ago and I also used to sneak out of my house at night as a kid and have adventures. So it was a nice read that took me back to childhood."
— Kenn (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“The hero is one of the most endearing in literature.”
— Daily Telegraph (London) -
“Grover Gardner slips inside the humor and drama of this classic, casting a spell that vividly creates Twain’s nineteenth-century setting for listeners…while creating memorable characters through accent and tone…Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.”
— AudioFile -
“Gardner’s resonant tones roll over the rich, extensive vocabulary, almost as if Twain himself were telling the story…The delightful audio enables kids to enjoy this compelling tale, which might seem daunting in book form.”
— Booklist (audio review) -
“Twain intended his novel not just as a book for the young but as a piece of nostalgia for the young at heart…It’s a relatively quiet reading—homey—as if told in retrospect by one’s grandfather.”
— KLIATT (audio review) -
“More than a book for boys, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, with its rich native humor and shrewd observations of human character, is an idyll of American village life.”
— Masterpieces of World Literature -
“The Adventures of Tom Sawyer has the truth of honesty—what it says about things and feelings is never false and always both adequate and beautiful.”
— Lionel Trilling, American literary critic
Awards
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Winner of an AudioFile Earphones Award
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An Audie Award Finalist for Best narration
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Listener Reviews
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" Mark Twain is the first author I discovered as a young reader. I read all of his books before I graduated from high school. The beautiful thing about Twain is that when retreading him, at different ages, the books continue to speak to you. "
— Joellen, 2/18/2014 -
" I like other Twain writings, just not Tom and Huck. The vernacular is very hard to read and the story just doesn't interest me. "
— cassie, 2/6/2014 -
" A classic adolescence coming of age story that I read in not only the 4th grade, but the 6th. A staple in American literature. "
— Alina, 2/4/2014 -
" A well-written book, but more suited towards boys. I did not care for this edition: while it was packed with facts and illustrations, the marginalia distracted from the actual text and could be overwhelming in the reader's peripheral vision. "
— Kelsey, 1/16/2014 -
" Like most kids, I read this in high school English class and, like most kids, I could take it or leave it. Well, I'm glad I decided to pick it up again! Only now can I appreciate what an artist Mark Twain was. It took me a while to get through the book because I kept stopping to savor great lines and scenes. Just awesome! "
— Kristal, 1/15/2014 -
" First Few Books I've Read. I was totally amazed back then. I'm hoping to reread. "
— June, 1/11/2014 -
" Not as great as The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, but Mark Twain's humor and storytelling abilities make it a classic read. I thoroughly enjoyed it and didn't want to put it down. "
— Melissa, 1/8/2014 -
" My very first book at the age of nine, bought by my Dad. I first fell in love watching the Japanese cartoons, but reading it was a lot different. It was an adventure. Very intriguing and captivating. "
— Anne, 10/27/2013 -
" Mark Twain really is brilliant! I loved this! I think anyone who has a little boy should read this! "
— Nmsbay, 10/22/2013 -
" Sharing some laughs at Tom Sawyer's expense with my 12, 10, and 7 yo's. What a great adventure story! "
— Dawn, 10/10/2013 -
" Dude goes to his own funeral, always wanted to do that. Great book. See my review of the Huckleberry Finn book. I read them back to back in summer 2010 after it had been 40+ years since my 6th grade teacher had read them to us in school. Still great... "
— towner77, 1/24/2013 -
" I've been listening to a Teaching Company course on American literature and the most recent lecture was on Tom Sawyer. Which reminded me how much I love this book. I've probably read it half a dozne times and discover something new with each reading. Guess that's why it's a classic. "
— Terri, 1/8/2013 -
" I have read this classic a couple of times. I love the story. "
— Sharlene, 11/26/2012 -
" It was pretty good. The best part was the ending. You never expected what was going to happen next. "
— Destin, 9/5/2012 -
" This was one of my favorite books as a kid and a great book to get a feel of American history during the 1930s and 1940s. "
— Scott, 8/19/2012 -
" This was a short, abridged audio CD on 1 CD. The story itself is a great Classic. "
— Ed, 5/24/2012 -
" Great fun, in a sort of inattentive, episodic sort of a way. "
— Richard, 5/15/2012 -
" Cute, displays the imagination of boys so well! "
— Stacey, 5/4/2012 -
" Ahh... The antics. The superstitions... Pirates... Twain's sarcasm. I love this book. So fun! "
— Kara, 1/18/2012 -
" Book nails the mentality of youth. "
— Roland, 1/12/2012 -
" Enjoyed reading this book....first time since grammar school.,so refreshed my memory. Will have to read Adventures of Huck Finn now "
— Karon, 6/3/2011 -
" Reading the Barnes & Noble Classics Series edition. (Note: only 267 pages in this edition) I had forgotten much of this novel. The parts I could remember were from the movie I had seen years ago. Enjoyed rereading this book once again. "
— Michael, 6/2/2011 -
" I wanted Tom and Huck in my life as a kid. They were real to me. "
— Michelle, 5/23/2011 -
" Eh... I found it annoying "
— Marina, 5/22/2011 -
" I like this more than Huck Finn. "
— Wes, 5/20/2011 -
" I found this book very funny and entertaining. Although most of my friends disagree with me, I thought this was a great book, especially when you're just in the mood to relax and have a good time. "
— Ingrid, 5/19/2011 -
" Not as good as Huck Finn. "
— Sanket, 5/18/2011 -
" i mean its a childrens book, amusing at times but i think overrated as a "classic" "
— Tony, 5/18/2011 -
" The antics of young boys can be very funny and entertaining <br/> "
— Sam, 5/16/2011 -
" Very hard to follow!!! <br/>This is the only book I know which the movie is wayy better "
— CJ, 5/15/2011 -
" Long live Mark Twain. He is so witty and charming in his writing style. "
— Emily, 5/15/2011 -
" Great Literature! Funny boys--make me laugh. "
— Judy, 5/14/2011 -
" Tom Sawyer is mischivou kid that likes to bribe others for his own personal gain. Along the way the have mini adventure. <br/>This book explored the mind of a child that was unpredictable. <br/> <br/>Theme: <br/>-Innocence <br/>-Being yourself <br/> "
— Navita, 5/14/2011 -
" Exciting, very suspenseful, with every random little event connecting to other events with a smooth flow. "
— Vincent, 5/11/2011 -
" Classic Twain with great and imaginative stories and anecdotes, Tom Sawyer is the boy you wish you were . . . . "
— Clayton, 5/11/2011
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 Grover Gardner
Grover Gardner (a.k.a. Tom Parker) is an award-winning narrator with over a thousand titles to his credit. Named one of the “Best Voices of the Century” and a Golden Voice by AudioFile magazine, he has won three prestigious Audie Awards, was chosen Narrator of the Year for 2005 by Publishers Weekly, and has earned more than thirty Earphones Awards.