MARK TWAIN'S LETTERS FROM HAWAII

by A. Grove- Ed. Day ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 18, 1966

Mark Twain's letters from Hawaii are a hundred years old and fresh as a 1966 penny. He voyaged out to the Sandwich Islands in March, 1866, and while there wrote twenty-five pieces for the Sacramento Union. He wrote of the sugar and whaling industry, of captains and kings. His utterly serious coverage of ""The Burning of the Clipper Ship Hornet at Sea"" made him a literary personage, but most of his letters glint with an ill-concealed sense of fun--a puckish humor delivered with perfect timing. The reader makes the acquaintance of Mr. Brown, improbable travelling companion, and Oahu, the spavined steed who barely bore the author about. Mark Twain witnessed the proceedings of the Legislature and the month long mourning over the funeral of the Princess Victoria Kamamalu Kaahuman. He found the King admirable, the hula hula a declining art. He pondered on the royal succession and Captain Cook's end, endured a brief rough voyage aboard the Boomerang, visited Mt. Pele's crater at midnight. He was as sensible of the beauty of the islands (he felt Captain Cook should have named them the Rainbow Islands) as he was of the warmth of the people. Mark Twain is still the favorite armchair traveling companion.

Pub Date: March 18, 1966

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Appleton-Century

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1966

Categories: NONFICTION