By: THE AWESOME Joey, Lucie, and Raven

When Halley's comet reached its closest point to the sun — Samuel Clemens was born in Florida, Missouri, on November 30, 1835. No one realized, that the fifth child of John and Jane Clemens would become more famous than the celebrated comet itself; recognized as one of the most important authors in American literature. Sam's father, John Clemens, was a successful lawyer, a justice of the peace, and a disciplinarian of his children. The combination of parental personalities would later be found in several of Mark Twain's characters, and Huckleberry Finn's concern for the less fortunate is reminiscent of Jane's kindness and compassion she showed Samuel. When Sam reached four, the family moved to Hannibal, Missouri. On the West bank of the Mississippi River, the surrounding land and waterways provided Sam with images for his future writings he created. The Mississippi River shoreline was occupied with rafts, and large steamboats moving up and down the main between the North and the South providing him with the landscape you see in many of his books. The tanyard, where Pap Finn would be in Huck Finn was found nearby, and downstream was a small cave where Injun Joe would later trap Tom and Becky in Tom Sawyer. Hannibal would became St. Petersburg in Tom Sawyer and the same town was used for the main setting in Huck Finn. With its landscape, river traffic, and pioneers passing through on their way to fortune in the West, Hannibal introduced Sam to an America that was big and new to everyone. More importantly, the town introduced the boy to two aspects of American life: the concept of slavery and the reality of death. Missouri was a slave state but Hannibal's northern political positioning ended in a part slave/part free community. At that time, Sam did not trouble himself with the distinction. His recollections of childhood included his attitude toward slavery, and he later acknowledged that he was unaware of its inhumanity:

"I had no aversion to slavery. I was not aware that there was anything wrong about it.“

He later died April 21, 1910 in Redding, Connecticut of angina pectoris (stable angina).I couldn’t find any awards he won.

Twain wrote 46 books totalSome of his more famous works are

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The adventures of Huckleberry Finn, A Connecticut Yankee in a King Arthur’s Court, A Dog’s Tale, and The Prince and the Pauper.

Huckleberry Finn- Narrator and main character of the story. Jim- Runaway slave of Miss Watson. Tom Sawyer- Huck's best friend. Pap Finn- Huck's drunk father who comes back to take Huck’s money. The Duke- River con man who claims to be the Duke of Bridgewater. The King- River con man who claims to be the disappeared heir to the French throne. Widow Douglas- Town widow who tries to civilize Huck. Miss Watson- Widow Douglas's sister. Aunt Polly- Tom Sawyer's aunt and guardian. Jo Harper, Ben Rogers, and Tommy Barnes-Town boys who are members of Tom's

"band of robbers." Judge Thatcher- town judge who watches over Huck’s money. Mrs. Loftus- St. Petersburg town woman. Jake Packard, Bill, and Jim Turner- Gang of murderers whom Huck and Jim discover. The Grangerfords- Distinguished family who watches over Huck when he gets separated

from Jim. Buck Grangerford -Youngest Grangerford boy who befriends Huck. Emmeline Grangerford- Grangerford daughter. The Shepherdsons- Distinguished family who feuds with the Grangerfords. Boggs- Arkansas town drunkard. Colonel Sherburn- The man who shoots Boggs. Peter Wilks- Deceased townsman. William and Harvey Wilks- Wilks' brothers who live in England. Mary Jane, Susan, and Joanna- Peter Wilks' nieces. Silas Phelps Tom's uncle. Sally Phelps Tom's aunt.

Setting-St. Petersburg, Jackson’s Island- Missouri

Huck has become rich from his adventure with Tom Sawyer (In the adventures of Tom Sawyer)and so the story starts with the Widow Douglas having taken Huck into her home with Mrs. Watson (her sister) try and teach him religion and proper manners. Instead of obeying , Huck sneaks out at night to smoke and join Tom’s gang and pretend that they are robbers. Huck soon learns his father returned to town, and when he tells Huck to quit school he continues to go just because he wants to get back at him. Huck's fears are fulfilled when his dad kidnaps him and takes him away. Huck becomes comfortable with his life free from all that Widow Douglas instilled in him, but soon his father’s beatings become seriously severe, and Huck fakes his own death and escapes from his father to save his own life. Huck lands in Jackson's Island, and there he stumbles across Jim, Mrs. Watson’s slave, who had run away in fear he will be sold into slavery. Huck and Jim learn men are coming to search the town for them, and the two escape down river on a raft they made.

The “duke” and the “king” that they meet along the way pretty much torture them and trick them… they eventually betray the two by selling Jim into slavery. When Huck goes to find Jim, he discovers Jim is held captive on Phelps' farm. The Phelps mistake him as their nephew, (Tom), and Huck just takes the role. Tom arrives and Huck explains Jim's issue, Tom ends up as his brother. Tom's plan to free Jim is based on adventure novels so when the escape takes place it’s a mess. A farmer trying to catch Jim shoots Tom in the calf… and because Jim would not leave Tom, Jim is recaptured and taken back to the farm. Tom reveals the entire scheme to Aunt Sally and Uncle Silas (The Phelps) and eventually they learn Miss Watson passed away and freed Jim in her will. At the end of the novel, Jim is finally set free and Huck and Tom are planning their next adventure.

I loved the book overall!!! I did find it hard to get into at first but after the first 50 pages it was very enjoyable and funny!!! Twain’s way of writing entirely in southern dialect is hard to understand but you get used to it once you read it. Huck is my favorite character in the book… He finds everyway to be the funniest and most able to relate to character in the book. I certainly recommend this book if you like funny old-fashioned adventures! :)

Tom Sawyer The main character of the novel. Aunt Polly Tom's aunt and legal guardian. Huckleberry Finn (Huck) The son of the town drunk. Widow Douglas- The wealthiest person in the town. Sidney Tom's half brother. Mary Tom's cousin. Becky Thatcher The pretty new girl to whom Tom is

attracted. Injun Joe He is the villain, the essence of evil in the

novel. Muff Potter The harmless old drunk. Judge Thatcher (and Mrs. Thatcher) Becky's

parents who are highly esteemed members of the community.

Mr. Dobbins The schoolmaster.

Aunt Polly finds Tom in the pantry where he has been eating forbidden jam. As she gets a switch, Tom convinces her that something is behind her. As she turns, he escapes, leaving her to contemplate how he constantly plays tricks on her. She is concerned whether or not she is "doing her duty by him," but because he is her dead sister's child, she cannot bring herself to be harsh with him. That afternoon, Tom plays hooky from school, and at supper that night, Aunt Polly tries to trap him into revealing that he skipped school. Tom is able to avert her questioning, until Sid, Tom's brother, squelches on him. Before Aunt Polly can say more, Tom escapes. Heading into town, Tom meets a stranger, "a boy larger than himself" and dressed up like a "city slicker." He and Tom get into a fight. Tom gets the better of the other boy and follows him home. The boy's mother appears and calls Tom a "bad vicious, vulgar child" and orders him away. At school, Tom is punished for being late and is required to sit in the "girls’ section." This pleases him because the only empty seat is next to Becky Thatcher. At lunch, he meets her, and they pledge their troth to each other. At midnight, Huck arrives, and they go to the cemetery where they come upon Dr. Robinson, Injun Joe, and Muff Potter who are digging up a recently buried corpse. The horrified boys flee and take a blood oath never to reveal what they have seen. The next day, the town is in an uproar (school is dismissed), and Injun Joe identifies Muff Potter as the murderer. Tom is fearful that Injun Joe will discover that he was a witness. Tom, his friend Joe Harper, and Huck Finn decide to become pirates. The three boys find a raft and establish camp on Jackson's Island, where they enjoy a carefree life of fishing, swimming, smoking, and exploring and playing. Tom sneaks home at night in order to leave Aunt Polly a reassuring note that they are all right, but he changes his mind when he overhears that church services are planned for the "deceased boys" if they are not found by Sunday.

The funeral services are secretly attended by the boys, and all rejoice when the dead boys casually stroll down the aisle. Back at school, Tom finally wins Becky's heart when he takes the blame for one of her indiscretions and heroically suffers the punishment for her misdeeds. At Muff Potter's trial, it is generally accepted that Muff Potter killed Dr. Robinson and will be hanged. Tom, in spite of his oath with Huck to not reveal what he has seen, cannot stand to see an innocent person hanged for a crime he did not commit. They come across men in an abandoned house and the boys fear that they are the subject of his planned vengeance but are fortunate enough to narrowly escape detection. The boys try to discover a place in town that would be the other hideout, but they only find a room filled with an abundant supply of whiskey in a Temperance Tavern. At the picnic celebrating Becky Thatcher's birthday, several of the boys and girls enter McDougal's Cave. Tom and Becky wander away from the others in search of privacy and become hopelessly lost. Meanwhile, Huck Finn, who is watching to discover Injun Joe's hideout, follows the two men toward Cardiff Hill, the home of the Widow Douglas and of a Welshman named Jones. Hiding behind a bush, he overhears Injun Joe telling of his intentions to mutilate the Widow Douglas because her husband, the judge, had once had him publicly horsewhipped. At the same time, it is discovered that Tom and Becky are missing; they have not been seen since the cave. Tom and Becky hear the search party in the distance but are too weak to call loudly enough to be heard. At one point in their ordeal, Tom catches sight of Injun Joe in a nearby passage. After they have been underground for about three days, Tom discovers a way out of the cave. He and Becky then make their way back to the town. Both are sick for a while, but Tom recovers more quickly than does Becky. Tom also discovers that Judge Thatcher has had the second exit to the cave completely sealed off. Tom reveals that Injun Joe was in the cave. In spite of Injun Joe's evil, Tom cannot let any human face the ordeal of starving that he and Becky just endured. After many false starts and using various clues, they recover approximately $12,000 worth of gold coins. This money is invested for them, and they are rich. The Widow Douglas takes Huck into her home to educate him and train him in the ways of civilization. Huck finds schooling, not cussing, and all other things connected with civilization to be completely intolerable, and he runs away. He eventually agrees to give civilized living another try if he can join Tom's band of robbers.

I thought the book was outstanding! The only thing I did not like about the book is it was hard to follow in some parts and with the old English you can barely get the taste of what they were saying. Overall, I thought the book had a great story to it and I definitely would recommend it to people who are big in literature and terminology.

Hank Morgan- The Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's court. Sir Kay the Seneschal- The knight who captures Morgan. Clarence- A page whom Morgan meets when he first arrives in

Camelot. Merlin- Supposedly the mightiest magician of the times. Guenevere- Queen of England; she is Arthur's wife. Sir Launcelot- He is the most prominent knight of the Round

Table. Sir Sagramor le Desirous- Another knight of the Round Table. Sandy- She is more formally known as the Demoiselle Alisande

la Carteloise. Morgan le Fay- Arthur's sister and King Urien's wife. Marco- He is a charcoal burner. Dowley- The blacksmith in the village near where the Marcos

live. Grip, an Earl- An important man in the neighborhood where

the Marcos live. Hello-Central- The daughter of The Boss and Sandy. Sir Mordred- A nephew of King Arthur. Sir Meliagraunce- A knight wounded in Morgan's last battle.

The story begins in Warwick Castle, where a man tells a tale told to by a "interested stranger" who is personified as a knight through his simple language. After a brief tale of Sir Lancelot of Camelot and his role in slaying two giants, the man named Hank Morgan enters and, after being given whiskey by the narrator, he is persuaded to reveal more of his story. He describes the beginning of his tale by entailing a disagreement with his co-workers, where he sustained a head injury from a crowbar. After passing out from the blow, Hank wakes up underneath an oak tree in Camelot where a Knight questions him for trespassing upon his land. After this he leads him towards the Camelot castle. Recognizing that he has time-traveled to the sixth century, Hank sees that he is the smartest person on Earth at the moment and with his smarts could be running things. Hank is made fun of at King Arthur's court for his odd appearance and style of dress and is sentenced by the magician Merlin to burn at the stake. A stroke of luck happens for Mr. Morgan, the date of his burning happens to be a historical solar eclipse in the year 528, in what Hank had learned about in his former time of being. Hank manages to convince the King and everyone else that he possesses a huge power… making it seem that he causes the eclipse at the moment when he is about to be burned, he claims that he has the power to permanently take the sun. Following all this he is appointed principal minister to the King. His new found “power” brings him a new title of "The Boss." The people fear him and he his new title, yet then Hank is seen as somewhat an equal to them. After being made "the Boss", he learns about medieval practices and superstitions. With his knowledge he is able to outwit the sorcerers and church officials. One point, soon after the eclipse, people begin to gather, hoping to see another miracle. Jealous, Merlin having been replaced as the king's principal adviser and as the most powerful sorcerer of the realm, begins spreading rumors that Hank is a fake to get back at him.

Hank plants explosive charges in Merlin's tower, then places the lightning rod at the top and runs a wire to the explosive charges. He announces that he will call fire from heaven to destroy Merlin's tower and challenges Merlin to prevent it. Merlin's incantations fail to prevent the explosion that levels the tower. Morgan, in his position as King's Minister, uses his modern knowledge to industrialize the country behind the back of the rest of the ruling class. His assistant Clarence, he decides to educate and gradually let in on most of his secrets he manages to rely on him. Hank sets up secret schools, teaching modern ideas and English, taking the generation from medieval concepts. He selects the people he allows to enter his factories and schools; to select only the most promising and least indoctrinated in medieval ideas. As Hank adjusts to his situation, he attends tournaments. A misunderstanding causes Sir Sagramore to challenge Hank to a duel to the death. Hank accepts, and spends the next years building up behind the Court’s back. At this point, he takes an adventure with a girl named Sandy. On the way, Hank struggles with the inconveniences of medieval plate armor, and also encounters Morgan le Fay. After he rescues Sandy’s “royalty” they find a travelling group of pilgrims headed for the Valley of Holiness. According to legend, the fountain had gone dry long ago and as soon as the monks of the valley's monastery made a bath… the bath was destroyed and the water instantly returned; but it has stopped with no clear cause. Hank is begged to restore the fountain. When Merlin fails, he claims that the fountain has been corrupted, and that it will never flow again. Hank, trying to look good says a demon has corrupted the fountain but also claims to be able to banish it. Really, the fountain is only leaking. He gets assistants from Camelot trained by him, who bring along a pump and fireworks for effect. They repair the fountain and Hank begins the banishment of the “demon”. At the end of several German phrases he says "BGWJJILLIGKKK", which is gibberish, but Merlin agrees with Hank that this is the name of the demon. The fountain is then restored. When King Arthur and Hank go undercover they are arrested and Hank lies his way out, but in his absence the real slave driver has discovered Hank's escape.

When King Arthur and Hank go undercover they are arrested and made slaves. Hank lies his way out of it, but in his absence the real slave driver has discovered Hank's escape. Since Hank was the most valuable slave he was due to be sold the next day, the man began beating his other slaves, who killed him. Hank is captured, but they are rescued by a party of knights led by Lancelot who are riding bicycles. Sagramore returns from his quest, and fights Hank. Hank defeats him and seven others, including Galahad and Lancelot, using a lasso. When Merlin steals the lasso, Sagramore returns to challenge him again. This time, Hank kills him with a revolver. He proceeds to challenge the knights of England to attack. After he kills nine more knights with his revolvers, the rest break and flee. The next day, Hank reveals his new infrastructure to the country. Three years later, Hank has married Sandy and they have a baby. The baby falls sick and Hank's doctors advise him to take his family overseas while the baby recovers. During the weeks that Hank is gone, Arthur discovers Guinevere's affair with Lancelot. This causes a war between Lancelot and Arthur, who is killed by Sir Mordred. The church then publishes "The Interdict" which causes all people to break away from Hank and revolt. The Catholic Church sends an army of 30,000 knights to attack them, but the knights are slaughtered. Hank's men are now trapped in the cave by a wall of dead bodies. One night, Clarence finds Merlin weaving a spell over Hank, proclaiming that he shall sleep for 1,300 years. Merlin begins laughing deliriously, but ends up electrocuting himself on one of the wires. Clarence and the others all apparently die from disease in the cave. More than a millennium later, the narrator finishes the manuscript and finds Hank on his deathbed having a dream about Sandy. He attempts to make one last "effect", but dies before he can finish it.

I especially enjoyed Mark Twain’s artistic approach throughout the book. He drew beautiful pictures pertaining to what the chapter was about; as well as the calligraphy of the first letter of the first word beginning each chapter. This made the story much easier to understand what was going on. I could better understand the story through all the artwork put in to break up the book; unlike The adventures of Tom Sawyer or Huck Finn where it was a straight read. Also a Connecticut Yankee in a King Arthur’s Court was written in a Old English style, very similar to Shakespeare’s “A Mid-Summer Night’s Dream” … This book was WONDERFUL.

Joey- The adventures of Tom Sawyer information and author information

Lucie- A Connecticut Yankee in a King Arthur’s Court book information, Power Point

Raven- The adventures of Huckleberry Finn book information, Power Point, power notes