The Letters of Mark Twain, Complete


Read by James K. White

(5 stars; 13 reviews)

These letters were arranged in two volumes by Albert Bigelow Paine, Samuel L. Clemens's literary executor, as a supplement to Mark Twain, A Biography, which Paine wrote. They are, for the most part, every letter written by Clemens known to exist at the time of their publication in 1917. They begin with a fragment of a letter from teenaged Sam Clemens to his sister, Pamela, and conclude with a letter to his attorney two weeks before his death.

These letters give us some degree of insight into the evolution of Twain's style of speech and prose over the period of his lifetime; they are a small window into the psyche that created the various characters of his stories.

But they also reveal the tragedies of his life: the lack of success in his business ventures, the passing of family. And as I read each one in this collection, I can almost detect the faint odor of one of his “devilish” cigars wafting across the room. (Introduction by James K. White) (32 hr 45 min)

Chapters

00 - Forward; Mark Twain--A Biographical Summary 43:07 Read by James K. White
01 - Vol. I, Chp. I 28:41 Read by James K. White
02 - Vol. I, Chp. II 51:20 Read by James K. White
03 - Vol. I, Chp. III (part 1) 48:40 Read by James K. White
04 - Vol. I, Chp. III (part 2) 34:57 Read by James K. White
05 - Vol. I, Chp. IV 24:12 Read by James K. White
06 - Vol. I, Chp. V 56:37 Read by James K. White
07 - Vol. I, Chp. VI 21:46 Read by James K. White
08 - Vol. II, Chp. VII 20:27 Read by James K. White
09 - Vol. II, Chp. VIII 34:05 Read by James K. White
10 - Vol. II, Chp. IX 43:39 Read by James K. White
11 - Vol. II, Chp. X 45:07 Read by James K. White
12 - Vol. II, Chp. XI 12:48 Read by James K. White
13 - Vol. II, Chp. XII 31:50 Read by James K. White
14 - Vol. II, Chp. XIII 32:02 Read by James K. White
15 - Vol. II, Chp. XIV 30:17 Read by James K. White
16 - Vol. II, Chp. XV 58:20 Read by James K. White
17 - Vol. III, Chp. XVI 48:56 Read by James K. White
18 - Vol. III, Chp. XVII 1:02:55 Read by James K. White
19 - Vol. III, Chp. XVIII 58:24 Read by James K. White
20 - Vol. III, Chp. XIX (part 1) 33:52 Read by James K. White
21 - Vol. III, Chp. XIX (part 2) 38:06 Read by James K. White
22 - Vol. III, Chp. XX 39:31 Read by James K. White
23 - Vol. III, Chp. XXI 41:54 Read by James K. White
24 - Vol. III, Chp. XXII 36:02 Read by James K. White
25 - Vol. III, Chp. XXIII 24:06 Read by James K. White
26 - Vol. III, Chp. XXIV 19:50 Read by James K. White
27 - Vol. III, Chp. XXV 44:30 Read by James K. White
28 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXVI 37:48 Read by James K. White
29 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXVII 29:27 Read by James K. White
30 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXVIII 25:56 Read by James K. White
31 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXIX 55:52 Read by James K. White
32 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXX 24:55 Read by James K. White
33 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXI 51:41 Read by James K. White
34 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXII 30:46 Read by James K. White
35 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXIII 1:02:43 Read by James K. White
36 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXIV 47:17 Read by James K. White
37 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXV 46:29 Read by James K. White
38 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXVI 34:50 Read by James K. White
39 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXVII 41:35 Read by James K. White
40 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXVIII 42:01 Read by James K. White
41 - Vol. IV, Chp. XXXIX 34:03 Read by James K. White
42 - Vol. V, Chp. XL 33:37 Read by James K. White
43 - Vol. V, Chp. XLI 30:23 Read by James K. White
44 - Vol. V, Chp. XLII 41:40 Read by James K. White
45 - Vol. V, Chp. XLIII 45:01 Read by James K. White
46 - Vol. V, Chp. XLIV 52:54 Read by James K. White
47 - Vol. V, Chp. XLV 35:22 Read by James K. White
48 - Vol. VI, Chp. XLVI 50:23 Read by James K. White
49 - Vol. VI, Chp. XLVII 25:59 Read by James K. White
50 - Vol. VI, Chp. XLVIII 18:37 Read by James K. White

Reviews

Live and Learn


(3 stars)

One has to admire James K. White for taking on such an immense project. His speaking voice is quite good, but he just doesn't pull off the Mark Twain impersonation. He sounds much more like a black man than anything resembling what I imagine Twain sounding like. In my opinion, it would have been better to just read the letters in his own voice rather than attempt a task that is beyond his ability.

Excellent Collection!


(5 stars)

Reading this collection was a labor of love for me, and the "brogue" I used served to honor Twain's memory, not to imitate his voice. No one can imitate Twain's voice because no one knows what he sounded like. But I suppose there will always be know-it-alls like Mr. Miller who find it a daunting task indeed to refrain from cluelessly pontificating on subjects they know nothing about.


(5 stars)

Listening to James White makes you believe you're listening to Mark Twain and it's a wonderful ride . Thank you James

fantastic book


(5 stars)

Thank you to the reader James K. White for bringing Mark Twain to life ... Excellent

Excellant !!


(5 stars)

Thoroughly enjoyed listening to this entertaining funny interesting LOVED IT !!


(4.5 stars)

This book is wonderfully read, and very enjoyable