The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain

Huckleberry Finn is generally considered one of the most important books in American literature—a book that continues to influence subsequent novels and generate scholarly discussion more than a century after it was written. Hungry for comradeship, the mischievous Huck Finn befriends an African American man named Jim. Together they raft down the Mississippi River, Huck escaping from his cruel father and Jim escaping from enslavement. Along the way Jim helps Huck learn the nature of friendship and the meaning of freedom.

Related Readings

from Understanding Adventures of Huckleberry Finn—literary criticism by Claudia Durst Johnson

from Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl—autobiography by Harriet Jacobs

Before the Fire Canoe—historical nonfiction by Frank Donovan

The Late Benjamin Franklin—humorous essays by Mark Twain

from Stride Toward Freedom—memoir by Martin Luther King Jr.

Study Guide (PDF)