In our time, there has been many authors. Perhaps the most interesting

and most widely known author has been Mark Twain.

Born Samuel Langhorne Clemens in 1835 in Florida, Missouri, Clemens has

been known as a humorist, narrator, and social observer. Clemens works are

some of the most widely known pieces in this country, and perhaps even the

world.

At the age of 4, Clemens moved with his family to Hannibal, Missouri, a

port located on the Mississippi River. In 1851, he began setting type for

and contributing sketches to his brother Orion's newspaper, the Hannibal

Journal. Later, Clemens was a steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River until

the Civil War. In 1862 he became a reporter for the Territorial Enterprise

in Virginia City, Nevada.

In 1863, he started using his pseudonym Mark Twain, which was a river

call for a depth of two fathoms. This was the beginning of Mark Twain,

because in 1865, he published The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calavaras County

and within months the author and the story had become national sensations.

Two of his recent novels have also been extremely popular. The Gilded

Age, which was published in 1873, took a look into the materialism and

corruption in the 1870's. Another book, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, has

been very popular. The story celebrates boyhood in a town on the Mississippi

River.

Reporters and many other people have been awaiting a sequel to The

Adventures of Tom Sawyer, but the author has not promised anything. He

states that he is now working on another novel, which has yet to be named,

but has given the plot away. He has said that the story is for children, and

that "it blends the simplicity of a fairy tale with realistic social

criticism.

Mark Twain is one author that is very humorous, and has ended the

domination of American literature by New England writers. He portrays

uniquely American subjects, in a humorous and colliqual, yet poetic,

language. We hope to see many more works from this author!