_Mark Twain's Adventures of Tom Sawyer: The Original Text Edition_. Alan
Gribben, ed., NewSouth Books, 2011. Paperback. Pp. 218. 9" x 6". ISBN:
978-1-60306-239-8. $12.95.

_Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: The Original Text Edition_.
Alan Gribben, ed., NewSouth Books, 2011. Paperback. Pp. 316. 9"x6". ISBN:
978-1-60306-241-1. $12.95.

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Reviewed for the Mark Twain Forum by Martin Zehr.

Copyright (c) 2013 Mark Twain Forum. This review may not be published or
redistributed in any medium without permission.

The plethora of printings of these cornerstone works of Twain dictates that,
when an edition warrants reviewing, it is because it offers a new
perspective on these classics, by virtue of commentary providing a novel
interpretation, or inclusion of unearthed material providing the scholar
with an expanded historical context for the period in which it was written.
The latter benefit is exemplified by the University of California editions
of Mark Twain's works which are advertised as "The Only Authoritative Text,"
and remain the gold standard of his novels. The September 2012 publication
of the NewSouth Books "Original Text Editions" (which were copyrighted in
2011) provides an additional reason for such notice. It is no secret to
members of the Mark Twain Forum, as well as to readers throughout the wider
universe, that Alan Gribben's NewSouth Books editions of _Tom Sawyer_ and
_Huckleberry Finn_ published in 2011, a scant two years ago, elicited
reactions including praise, indignation, and even condemnation.

A detailed discussion of the bibliophilic brouhaha which accompanied the
2011 edition of these works is unnecessary, given the comprehensive review
of the prior edition by Kevin Mac Donnell which appeared on the Mark Twain
Forum in April 2011. The deletion of the words "nigger," "half-breed," and
"Injun" in that edition, for the purpose of rendering the works more
acceptable in classrooms, triggered a response ". . . in the mass media
(which) has run the gamut from frowns of disapproval to hysterical personal
attacks" (Mac Donnell). The most significant change in the present editions
is the reinstatement of the offending words, hence the designation,
"Original Text Edition." In his introduction to the two works Gribben does
not use the primary offender, referring to it as the "n-word," "a linguistic
corruption of 'Negro,'" and "this racial insult," a decision which may well
reflect Gribben's own sensitivities in this regard, or an intentional
strategy which draws attention to the word "nigger" as a prelude to a
"teachable moment," an ironic strategy cited by Mac Donnell in his review,
one that might have elicited a chuckle, and a rough calculation of
additional sales, by Twain himself.

The texts of these newest editions are not sufficiently different from most
available printings to warrant detailed discussion, except to note that the
"raft chapter" which was excised from Twain's original draft of _Adventures
of Huckleberry Finn_ and inserted in chapter three of _Life on the
Mississippi_ is incorporated in its originally intended sequence. Missing
from both of these NewSouth Books editions are the original illustrations.

Gribben's introduction underscores their similarities, stressing his
contention that they are meant to be read and studied together. Referring to
both works as "Boy Books," Gribben provides a brief history of the genre,
and also discusses Twain's penchant for literary burlesque, his satirical
targets, and the literary "realistic movement of which Twain was a stalwart
champion." The covers of both volumes, with portraits of Tom and Huck taken
from illustrations by True Williams and Edward Kemble, reinforce Gribben's
contention that "Mark Twain envisioned a cohesiveness between his most
celebrated novels…" and _Adventures of Huckleberry Finn_ is advertised on
its cover as " . . . His Sequel Boy Book."  _Adventures of Tom Sawyer_ is
the title of its counterpart, omitting the pesky original article which is
often appended mistakenly to _Adventures of Huckleberry Finn_, but perhaps
this is also a deliberate attempt to underscore their similarities. An
Editor's Note in the _Huck Finn_ volume contains an assertion that the
"G.G., Chief of Ordnance" in Twain's prefatory "Notice" "presumably refers
to General U.S. Grant." Other scholars may agree with Lin Salamo's
conclusion, contained in the California edition of _Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn_, that the reference is to George Griffin, butler in the
Clemens's Hartford residence, whose "… role as peacemaker and two incidents
involving firearms . . . qualified him playfully as 'Chief of Ordnance.'"
(_Adventures of Huckleberry Finn_, UCal. Edition, 2001, p. 376).

The afterward in each of these volumes consists of two pages listing
"satirical targets" by chapter, as a basis for class discussion, without
amplification or explanation. These "targets," including child abuse,
slavery, Walter Scott, and Sunday school exercises, were included in the
previous NewSouth 2011 edition.

Gribben, in his introduction to the 2011 NewSouth Books edition, explained
that his deletion of the words "nigger," "Injun," and "half-breed" from
these works was motivated by a desire to find a way to get Huck and Jim into
classrooms where they would otherwise be excluded. According to personal
correspondence from Gribben, his original plan in 2011 was to have NewSouth
Books issue two nearly-identical editions of both _Huckleberry Finn_ and
_Tom Sawyer_--one edition with and one without the offending language and
both versions featuring the same pagination. Different, but almost identical
editions, would give students a choice of which version they prefer to read
and thus maximize the probability that these works will be included in
classroom syllabi. However, other publishing commitments resulted in an
almost two-year delay for the NewSouth "Original Text Editions." Gribben
restated the primary motivation for the simultaneous availability of the two
versions of these classics:

"The idea for having virtually identical texts with the exception of the
racial epithets is that instructors and students can choose the version they
are comfortable teaching and reading--their pagination is exactly the same.
That way the discussions can center around larger issues of the book,
especially the price of unthinking social conformity, rather than having
that one single racial slur soak up the majority of classroom time"
(Gribben, 11 January 2013).

The repugnance for the word "nigger" has been, and quite predictably, will
continue to be, an obstacle to teaching either of these books in a high
school or middle school setting. In this one respect, teaching or reading
these works will always entail extra effort, as will the confrontation with
racism in any setting. The use of the word "nigger" has not, however, seemed
to diminish the attraction of either of these novels for the general public.
In an unscientific study of the latter proposition, this reviewer visited
one of the local Barnes & Noble outlets to make a listing of the available
versions of _Adventures of Huckleberry Finn_. To my surprise, the store
sells eight different versions of _Huck_, ranging from the 2010 paperback
edition of the University of California Press "Authoritative Text" edition
to a $4.95 Barnes & Noble Classics paperback, the bargain of the bunch,
which included an excellent, no-holds-barred introduction by Robert
O'Meally, an equally competent historical introduction, footnotes, endnotes,
and a chronology of Twain's life. Equally surprising was the finding that
all eight of these editions, including a 2006 hardback printing by "Sterling
Children's Books," used the original text, i.e., did not excise the word
"nigger." This informal case study is not, of course, dispositive with
respect to the issue of choice of words, but it does suggest that, for a
profit-oriented business like Barnes & Noble, the controversy is not one of
particular importance. It also suggests that, contrary to Twain’s
assessment, classics are sometimes praised and read.

The use of the word "nigger" is not likely to disappear from editions of
either of these classics in the foreseeable future. Attempts to eradicate
its literary life, either through outright banning or a surgical attempt to
render Twain's works more palatable, are not likely to be successful. It
should be emphasized that this was never the intention of Gribben, who has,
likely thousands of times in the last two years, explained that his
motivation was to offer an alternative version of these books that increases
the likelihood they will continue to be read and studied. Gribben's return
to the fray is testimony to a determination to proselytize to all comers the
continuing vitality and importance of these masterpieces of the American
literary canon.