Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
    A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
    A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
    Audiobook11 hours

    A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

    Written by Mark Twain

    Narrated by William Dufris

    3.5/5

    ()

    Switch to ebook

    About this audiobook

    A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court is both a whimsical fantasy and a social satire chock-full of brilliant Twainisms. Hank Morgan, a nineteenth-century American-a Connecticut Yankee-by a stroke of fate is sent back into time to sixth-century England and ends up in Camelot and King Arthur's Court. Although of average intelligence, he finds himself with knowledge beyond any of those in the sixth century, and he uses it to become the king's right hand man and to challenge Merlin as the court magician. Astounded at the way of life in Camelot, Hank does the only thing he can think of to do: change them. In his attempt to civilize medieval Camelot, he experiences many challenges and misadventures.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateJun 29, 2010
    ISBN9781400186075
    Author

    Mark Twain

    Mark Twain, who was born Samuel L. Clemens in Missouri in 1835, wrote some of the most enduring works of literature in the English language, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc was his last completed book—and, by his own estimate, his best. Its acquisition by Harper & Brothers allowed Twain to stave off bankruptcy. He died in 1910. 

    More audiobooks from Mark Twain

    Related to A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

    Related audiobooks

    Fantasy For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The best-ever ROMANCES

      Jan 7, 2021

      The best-ever ROMANCES
      2 min read

    • Article

      Odd Squad

      Jun 16, 2021

      Odd Squad
      3 min read

    • Article

      Why I’ve Stopped Waiting for ‘The Winds of Winter’

      May 11, 2018

      1. It was my ex who first suggested I read George R.R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones. “I think you’ll like it,” he said, pulling his copy from the wooden bookcase in the corner of his bedroom. The shelves sagged under the weight of the epic fantasies th

      5 min read

    • Article

      Hook, Line And Sinker

      Oct 18, 2018

      Hook, Line And Sinker
      4 min read

    • Article

      When Lizzie met Maggie

      Dec 13, 2023

      The Grim Reaper has been having a high old time of late. I've barely had a moment to keep up with my diary, I have been so busy writing letters of condolence, attending funerals and giving addresses at memorial services. I was especially saddened by

      3 min read

    • Article

      I Used To Be Well Read

      Jun 29, 2022

      I Used To Be Well Read
      4 min read

    • Article

      The Escape Of Koravitch

      Sep 30, 2019

      The Escape Of Koravitch
      16 min read

    • Article

      A Hedgerow Moralist

      Nov 18, 2020

      A Hedgerow Moralist
      5 min read

    • Article

      Readers’ Letters

      Oct 18, 2023

      Readers’ Letters
      4 min read

    • Article

      TALL, WIDE, and Piercing Eyes

      Mar 1, 2019

      TALL, WIDE, and Piercing Eyes
      7 min read

    • Article

      Right Royal Writers

      May 4, 2022

      Right Royal Writers
      4 min read

    • Article

      A Year in Reading: Matt Seidel

      Dec 9, 2017

      I tend to buy used books in bunches, which means the haul from some expeditions stays buried for weeks, months, years even. For this entry, I highlight three finds that, breaking custom, I bought and read almost immediately this year: Hugo Charteris’

      6 min read

    • Article

      Grace Period

      Jun 9, 2022

      Grace Period
      9 min read

    • Article

      Edward Wilson

      Dec 3, 2020

      Edward Wilson immigrated to the UK from America after serving in the Vietnam War. After his teaching career ended, he became the author of eight highly acclaimed books, including the Catesby spy thrillers as well as standalones. ‘Portrait of the Spy

      6 min read

    • Article

      Finding Facts In Fiction

      Mar 12, 2021

      Finding Facts In Fiction
      10 min read

    • Article

      Anniversaries

      Sep 30, 2021

      Anniversaries
      5 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court

    3.5/5

    67 ratings50 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      Clever as hell. Twain always makes you think. The book is immersive, having the proper language and turns of phrases to pull one into the world. Really it would take someone of Twain's intelligence to pull off such an effort. Maybe not a big deal in his day, but in today's world, this book would have been impossible: today every one runs at an even keel that someone about 50 years ago set at "dumb". (As proof of this I ask you to consider whether Stieg Larsson or Stephanie Meyer could have written a work comparable to any of Twain's works)

      Of course I detest Twain's philosophy, but this book is a flushing of ideas and absurdities, and in someway he makes light of his own world view making them look quite ridiculous when you read it with the eye of one who has observed the last 100 years of world history.

      A very necessary read as literary art and even as entertainment.

      Well done, man from Hannibal. I hope your grave is cozy.
    • 2/5
      With just a vague memory of the film adaptation starring Bing Crosby, some notion of the influences it has had on Doctor Who, and the cover illustration as a guide, I approached A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court expecting a typically structured but entertaining story of a man out of time and although Twain/Clemens’s tale begins in that mode, it quickly tips over into a far darker meandering satire on Western imperialism and industrialisation. The protagonist Hank Martin is a loathsome figure and even though the story’s told from his POV, I slowly became more and more protective of the Arthurian characters who barely seem to deserve the treatment the Yankee gives them. But that’s Twain/Clemens’s point I think; how the modern versions of us, apparently so sophisticated, are desperate to sap the magic from the world, be it in nature or man itself. A difficult read but a transportative one. This is psychogeographical literature.
    • 4/5
      This was good fun and had a surprising amount of social commentary whenever Hank (the Boss) Morgan was trying to educate his 6th century Britons on the evils of slavery, class structures and religious intolerance. Although you'll think of it all as a fantasy dream, the ending actually has plausible magician-like twist that provides an explanation for the "time forward" part of the trip.You of course have to suspend belief that a late 19th century American would be speaking any kind of a language that 6th century Britons would have understood. The compromise is that most speak a Le Morte D' Arthur kind of English and Hank every once and while has to explain his futuristic words in plain terms.I listened to the 2017 Audible Audio edition which had an excellent narration by Nick Offerman.
    • 3/5
      Sometimes rambling, but an excellent case against state controlled societies and the harm it does to the human spirit.
    • 3/5
      A time travel book, the first? Clemens' view of the 6th century from the 19th is amazing. And, I was in awe that the words he used in the 19th century are good in the 21st...slang for example. This is really a story of about the biggest problems Mark Twain observed in his time period, including slavery, abuses of political power, unchecked factory growth, child labor, and frightening new war technology. And,the final battle scene aptly predicts the great war (WWI). All of it applied with wit!
    • 3/5
      This was a funny classic from Mark Twain. The idea was enjoyable and most of the storyline was enjoyable. However, it did seem to drag on during parts. I am used to Twain's writing style so that was not the problem. He just seemed to get caught in words during some parts. I really enjoyed Hank Morgan giving his perspective on King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table using his modern" 19th century eye. It was also interesting to read his perspective on the Arthur/Lancelot/Guinevere love triangle."
    • 5/5
      An absolutely wonderful, humourous book. One of Twain's best.
    • 5/5
      Twain's version of Gulliver's Travels, with wonderful satire on the nature of the modern world thrown in.
    • 3/5
      Audio book performed by William Defris

      Hank Morgan is an engineer and machinist in 1879 Connecticut. After a blow to the head that knocks him unconscious, he awakens beneath a tree and discovers he has been transported back some thirteen centuries to King Arthur’s England, A.D. 528. This is the story of his adventures and misadventures in that bygone era.

      Satire is not my favorite genre, but I enjoyed parts of this satire immensely. Twain gave us images that made me laugh aloud – e.g. the knights in armor playing baseball or riding bicycles. There were also images that depicted the hard life of that time and place – e.g. the condition of prisoners, the ignorance and poverty of the peasants. Some images were particularly distressing (war and slavery). Twain also included scenes of great tenderness and compassion – e.g. the smallpox hut, or family life.

      Twain has our hero using his intelligence and expertise to amaze and convince the populace (including King Arthur and the knights of the round table) of his powers and superiority. But as he continues to make “improvements” (mostly for his benefit), he slowly but surely destroys the civilization he found. Imagine introducing telephones, electricity, Gatling guns, soap, and then the concept of a democratic republic into the 6th century. No wonder they thought him a powerful magician/wizard.

      I wondered for a while what exactly Twain’s purpose was, but as I read further it seems clear to me that he was commenting on the current political and social situations of late 19th century America. He has Hank campaign against poverty, the prevailing class system and slavery. And campaign for better wages, improved supply and demand, and literacy for a broader populace. I was somewhat disappointed in the ending. It seemed abrupt, as if Twain had run out of ideas. Still, I can clearly see how this has stood the test of time.

      William Defris does a fine job of the audio book. I loved his voices for Hank, Clarence and Sandy.
    • 3/5
      Funny and clever, until the end at least. Why all that killing?
    • 4/5
      Mark Twain's classic tale of a 19th-century go-getter who gets hit on the head, wakes up in the kingdom of Camelot, and proceeds to gleefully set about introducing his own era's technology and ideas about civilization to the Dark Ages (soon to be briefly lit by electricity).This isn't the first time I'd read this novel, but my last encounter was nearly a quarter-century ago, and apparently I hadn't remembered it nearly as well as I'd thought. I'd recalled it, somewhat fondly, as a comic romp, a humorous satire of both Arthurian romance and the social attitudes of the Gilded Age, as well as the predecessor of a zillion less interesting science fiction stories in which improbably ingenious time travelers manage to rebuild their own technologically advanced civilizations centuries early, from scratch.Well, it is all of those things. But what I'd completely forgotten is that it's also a scathing diatribe against monarchy, slavery, state-established religion, and the oppression of the poor, complete with lots of disturbing and depressing scenes calculated to bring the importance of these subjects home. Twain being Twain, it's very well done, but it does perhaps get to be a bit much. It certainly wasn't an ideal thing to read at a time when I was busy and easily distracted.Rating: Despite it not being quite the right book at the right time for me, I figure it still probably deserves 4/5. Because, come on, Twain.
    • 4/5
      Twain has a wicked sense of humor, but his novels on social commentary tend to be even more powerful than his playful ones. My assumption was that this book would fall into the comedy category. Based on film versions and the general premise, it sounded like an entertaining, light novel. While there were some very funny parts, this is a much darker book than I was expecting. It’s both an adventure and a cautionary tale. There are also so many wonderful lines, zingers that I know I can always expect from Twain.The plot tells the story of a man who is hit in the head and wakes up 1300 years earlier in 528 AD. It’s the Dark Ages and King Arthur is on the throne. He has no way of getting home, so instead he tries to build a life in England and becomes one of King Arthur’s knights. The dark tone of the book seeps into almost every scene. Even when our narrator is using gunpowder to pretend to have magic, there’s always a chance that he will be killed for sorcery. In one section our time traveling hero is touring the countryside with King Arthur, who is disguised as a peasant. They come upon a home where a family of four is dying of a disease plaguing the area. They care for them, but it’s much too late to save them from their grim fate. In their dying moments they learn that this family’s misfortune, perpetuated by the local manor lord, left them destitute and desperate. The King is being forced to see the problems in his kingdom firsthand and it’s not a pleasurable experience. BOTTOM LINE: There are jousts and hangings, betrayals and jealousy; all the great elements of an adventure novel. I was surprised by how much depth I found and the bittersweet ending will stick with me. “The mere knowledge of a fact is pale; but when you come to realize your fact, it takes on color. It is all the difference between hearing of a man being stabbed to the heart, and seeing it done.”“Inherited ideas are a curious thing, and interesting to observe and examine.”“Intellectual "work" is misnamed; it is a pleasure, a dissipation, and is its own highest reward. The poorest paid architect, engineer, general, author, sculptor, painter, lecturer, advocate, legislator, actor, preacher, singer is constructively in heaven when he is at work; and as for the musician with the fiddle-bow in his hand who sits in the midst of a great orchestra with the ebbing and flowing tides of divine sound washing over him—why, certainly, he is at work, if you wish to call it that, but lord, it's a sarcasm just the same.”
    • 4/5
      It was good to get my teeth into this, having meant to read it for a long time. I enjoyed the humour, and the political commentary, despite not agreeing with it and preferring (with a somewhat guilty pleasure) the shining chivalric version of Camelot to the dirt, ignorance and stupidity of this world. Parts of it felt very ranty and not like a story at all -- like the story was a vehicle for the political rants. Which is the way some authors work, and I suspect I'll find it in at least some of Twain's other work, when I revisit -- as a child, I didn't see it that way, but children tend not to.

      There's lots of amusing ideas, and I kinda wish this was on my Arthurian Lit course to discuss -- I don't think it is, but you never know, I still might be able to write an essay on it...

      It's definitely not so much about Arthur/Camelot as it is about Twain's own day, though. Don't be deceived.
    • 5/5
      I kept waiting for some grand end to this book, something that would give the rest of it purpose. And the closest I got was the suggestion that perhaps the world would be better off it all the ruling monarchs were replaced with ruling cats. A large part of me wanted that to be the ultimate conclusion. It wasn't. Still, the book was entertaining (though I must confess I skipped over a hefty portion of the period writing--I just couldn't take it).Overall, it was a fun book. There was a mix of humor and a look at what makes people behave the way they do. The book was a little long, and I kept waiting for that "Aha!" moment, but it was worth the time and effort it took to read.
    • 3/5
      Mark Twain's classic tale of culture clash. The narrator was great.
    • 4/5
      Like most readers, I everything I knew about this book came from pop-culture references. I was curious going into out the premise could be dragged out so long.Dragged is a poor word-choice in this case, as it didn't drag at all. The observations by both the main character those expected to be picked up by the reader were amusing and apt. I really enjoyed this - far moreso than I normally do with Twain's writing.
    • 2/5
      None of the other reviews have mentioned it, but I thought you needed a pretty strong stomach and a lack of empathy to get through all the tortures, deaths, and casual confinement of prisoners for decades. I read this book when I was about 14, and recently wanted to reread to see if my son would like it, but I think I must have read an abridged version. Way too sad for me.
    • 4/5
      A Yankee goes back in time when he gets in the head. He works to transform Arthur's England to make it democratic and better. He succeeds until the King dies, then everything has to be destroyed to keep things from being used against them. This is a satire on many things and is worthy of more discussion than I am giving it!
    • 4/5
      One of Twain's better novels. It's hilarious, especially if you've read Thomas Malory or other old Arthurian stories, but it's also much, much darker and weirder than I'd expected.
    • 3/5
      What a very American book! I read that Mark Twain was writing this as a satire, criticizing the institution of slavery, but for me, it's a bit of a parody of how the Americans go into developing countries around the world and try to muscle through changes in the name of advancement, civilization and democracy, in disregard of local customs, sensitivities, etc. Not that I think that local customs and all the things that are defended in the name of 'local culture' are necessarily good, and in fact the values that Mark Twain is promoting are values that I do agree with in principle, but the gung-ho cowboy way of going into other countries is something distinctly American. Or at least, I think it agrees with the way much of the world views Americans... :p In any case, a bizarre story--I'm not sure what to make of it in the end.
    • 3/5
      A delightful humorous account of time travel by Mark Twain. Reading a work from the 1880's by an author writing in the "style" of England in the 6th Century was at times difficult to understand. Twain's humor shielded in serious dialog made it even more difficult. But nonetheless I did enjoy reading Twain's views on slavery, economy, health, chivalry, and religion from eyes that had just seen the bloody American Civil War. The accounts of his character hank's interactions of slavery were heart wrenching as well as the stories of poverty, illness and injustice. Twain's goal in this work was to ridicule chivalry, some say because of Southern attitudes towards chivalry during the war. I expected many great quotes, but only this one stood out, "My acquaintance smiled - not a modern smile, but one that must have gone out of general use many, many centuries ago." (p, 16) And one more, Hank has just met Clarance who informs hank he is a page, "Go 'long, I said; "you ain't more than a paragraph." (p.28)01-2010
    • 4/5
      Twain's tale of time travel.
    • 5/5
      Not at all the Saturday afternoon feature starring Bing Crosby. I was amazed at the dissimilarity. Here, the Yankee so improves Camelot with the inventions of the nineteenth century that he works a revolution. Lancelot is not a lout! This fantasy is well done and very much more entertaining than a darkened cinema and unreal colors on the screen.
    • 5/5
      The United States in the 19th century. Hartford, Connecticut. Hank Morgan receives a blow to the head and is suddenly and inexplicably transported to 6th-century England. After this time travel, Hank Morgan, still equipped with his 19th-century knowlege, starts an adventure through medieval England. Captured and brought to King Arhtur's court he is sentenced to burn at the stake. However, Hank Morgan manages to escape his fate by divining a solar eclipse, which, regarding the circumstances, is not such a big feat. Much to the chagrin of the greatest magician of England, the famous Merlin, Morgan manages to become the chief minister to King Arthur and is henceforth known and feared as 'The Boss' because of his magical capabilities. Living up to his position, Hank Morgan slowly starts to institute changes in a society that can only seem totally backward to his 19th-century eyes. His main goals throughout the novel are to diminish the power and influence of the church, to abolish the insitution of knight-errantry, to introduce the democratic republic as a new system of government, and, on a more personal level, to publicly make Merlin look like a fool whenever he can.As much as this book can be seen as a criticism of monarchy and the strong role of the church, it can be read as a criticism of slavery in the United States. Aristocrats in 6th-century England are compared to slaveholders in America: "The repulsive feature of slavery is the thing, not its name. One needs but to hear an aristocrat speak of the classes that are below him to recognize - and in but indifferently modified measure - the very air and tone of the actual slaveholder; and behind these are the slaveholder's spirit, the slaveholder's blunted feeling. They are the result of the same cause in both cases: the possessor's old and inbred custom of regarding himself as a superior human being." (p. 190)The original illustrations by Daniel Carter Beard underline Twain's criticism throughout the novel and contribute to its satiric tone.Speaking of the humorous and satirical qualities of Mark Twain's A Connecticut Yankee in King Arhtur's Court, I much enjoyed the frequent jabs Twain took at different institutions or groups of people. Those parts definitely contributed to an already great reading experience. Read what Mark Twain has to say about the German language when he compares it to 6th-century English:"(...) I was standing in the awful presence of the Mother of the German Language. (...) If words had been water, I had been drowned, sure. She had exactly the German way: whatever was in her mind to be delivered, whether a mere remark, or a sermon, or a cyclopedia, or the history of a war, she would get it into a single sentence or die. Whenever the literary German dives into a sentence, that is the last you are going to see of him till he emerges on the other side of his Atlantic with his verb in his mouth."To my mind, Twain's exploration of the possibility of speeding up historical development makes this novel even more valuable. When 19th-century Yankee Hank Morgan tries to use his advanced knowledge of history to do away with monarchy and set up a democratical society, the question arises whether 6th-century England is ready for such a radical change. In the end, Morgan himself has to act as the driving force of revolution only to see his system fail when people fall back to their 6th-century beliefs. The church certainly plays an important role here as a separation of church and state is not yet ingrained in people's minds. Therefore, the experiment of introducing a democratic system in the 6th-century is doomed to fail. Now is it just that mankind is not ready for the change yet and has to exist a couple of centuries longer to recognize the merit of a different system? Or is it the radical and abrupt way in which Hank Morgan approaches his project? In the end, even Hank himself recognizes that with him as a leader in a democratic society nothing much would change as people would regard him as the ruling monarch and 'The Boss'.In conclusion, Mark Twain's novel is a highly enjoyable and highly recommendable read for several reasons, of which I will name the four main ones for me. First, it is a humorous depiction of 6th-century customs, especially knight-errantry. Second, it raises some very interesting questions and makes you rethink the development of different systems of government. Third, Beard's illustrations fit perfectly to Twain's narrative and as Twain said himself "[Beard ] not only illustrates the text but he illustrates my thoughts". Fourth, the narrative of the Yankee's adventure's in King Arthur's court are highly readable and reminded me somewhat of the adventures of Miguel Cervantes' Don Quixote, which I loved. All in all, 4.5 stars.
    • 2/5
      Better as an audiobook than I remember. I’m sure it was clever in its day, but that doesn’t make it still good. Moralistic, preachy, and led with an awkward framing story.
    • 2/5
      I loved the idea of this tale. A man with full knowledge of modern marvels somehow travels back to a much less civilized time and wreaks havoc. But after the initial fascination wore off, it became a rather tedious read.The main character suddenly finds himself in medieval times, surrounded lunacy and superstition. A well-timed eclipse is the only thing that saves him from execution, and he then begins using his knowledge of modern conveniences to claim his position as a man of magic. Initially, it's fun and interesting, but it soon becomes one "magic" display after another, while the locals act like idiots, until the whole thing blows up and he finds himself back in the modern day. I suppose it would make for a good movie, but as much as I like Twain, I have to say I am more than finished with this book
    • 3/5
      I loved this book. It was short and funny.
    • 4/5
      What happens when a man from 19th century Connecticut suddenly finds himself in the world of King Arthur? He tries to modernize the place, of course. It's a quite humorous look at a man who can outperform the magician Merlin by equipping them with useful gadgets like telephones. He even trains the armed forces with 19th century weaponry. I'm not a huge fan of time travel stories, but this one was just absurd enough to keep me laughing. Twain's imagination in this novel is certainly one of the things that probably endeared him so much as a 19th century humorist. I suspect that a 21st century Connecticut Yankee would be burned at the stake as a witch when he came up with the Internet and other inventions that have transpired in the 125 years or so since the writing of this work.
    • 3/5
      Considering that I am a fan of Mark Twain and that I have a deep and abiding love of all things Arthurian, it's a bit surprising that it took me so long to read A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court. The story is bookended by Mark Twain himself describing his encounter with Hank Morgan, the titular Yankee, who gives Twain a manuscript of his experience in 6th-century England--King Arthur's England. Hank is a 19th-century man just like Twain but one day finds himself in the 6th Century and promptly captured by Sir Kay. He is thrown in prison and sentenced to death, but by learning the date, he knows that a solar eclipse will occur the following day and uses this knowledge to position himself as a great wizard. Merlin is naturally miffed, and the two are rivals from that time forward.Through his wisdom and influence upon King Arthur and the nation, he earns the title of The Boss. He cares nothing for the Temporal Prime Directive and sets about creating his own pocket of the 19th century within the 6th. He establishes a newspaper, a telephone service, gun factories, a standing army, a navy, sandwich board advertising, and many more innovations. All throughout The Boss displays a mixture of disdain and amusement toward the people and customs around him. I had hoped that he might be brought down a peg or two for his hubris, but apparently this wasn't that sort of story. His commentary is often funny though, making this a bit like RiffTrax: King Arthur edition. As some of the jokes are about the way that the people of Arthur's England talk (based on the way that medieval writers wrote), it's probably funnier if you're already familiar with the medieval style of narration in these sort of tales of chivalry. Twain even lifts whole sections of description directly from Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur.The Boss is a hard character to like, in that he enjoys humiliating people and is rarely forgiving of how the people of the 6th century think and believe, given their education, or lack thereof. That said, I still enjoyed the book. Near the end, when it came to describing the events that led to King Arthur's death (despite the fact that it took a mere two pages to do so and it generally takes several chapters in most Arthurian tales), I couldn't help but be caught up in the emotion of it all. That part of Arthur's story always gets to me though, perhaps because my first introduction to Arthurian literature was part of a packet handed out by my Brit Lit teacher in high school: the final chapter of T.H. White's The Once and Future King, in which the old King thinks back on his life, his achievements and failures, and all that has led up to this final battle, which he knows he will not survive. It breaks my heart every time. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court can be a little dense at times, but I definitely recommend it to anyone wishing to read a book that pokes fun at the oft-times serious genre of medieval romance.
    • 5/5
      I don't know why this book doesn't rank higher among the classics & isn't discussed more. Twain manages to highlight more of our human & modern society's ills & graces than any other book I've read. This is not just a man out of his time, but a journey of discovering just how large, fast changes, seemingly made for the best, can actually be horrifying with unforeseen consequences. (Sound familiar? Haven't we all been talking about how technology & the Internet has changed our lives so much recently?)

      Twain somehow manages to cover it all in this fairly short book; the justice system, technology, human rights, & war. Was he a time traveler himself? He first published this book in 1872, but the final battle is eerily reminiscent of World War I which took place over 3 decades later.

      Twain's themes are practically timeless, as often hilarious as they are poignant. The section where Hank, the Connecticut Yankee, is traveling with Arthur incognito is one of my favorites. The Yankee might be out of place, but Arthur is even more so in his own time & kingdom simply due to his status.

      The writing style takes a bit of getting used to, but is wonderful, giving even Shakespeare a run for his money. Take this gem:
      I passed them at a rattling gait, and as I went by I flung out a hair-lifting soul-scorching thirteen-jointed insult which made the king's effort poor and cheap by comparison. I got it out of the nineteenth century where they know how.

      The story isn't perfect. Characters were too often caricatures, common to Twain's writing, but he uses this to great effect when circumstance suddenly twists. There was quite a bit of convenience to the plot, but again this is used to make his points. Overall it is an amazing read & one that should be hauled out every decade or so & reviewed.