-----Original Message-----
From: Gretchen Martin <[log in to unmask]>
To: TWAIN-L <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Fri, Sep 13, 2013 9:08 am
Subject: Re: Dear Mark Twain


I concur with the positive comments already made about Dear Mark Twain but would 
like to add that an aspect I found so interesting is that these letters really 
give insight into what general late nineteenth-early twentieth-century readers 
valued, disliked, approved of, found humorous, etc.... A peek into the various 
perspectives of average Americans in a given era can be difficult to access (as 
opposed famous, historical, powerful people), and this book offers rare insight 
into average Americans and their literary and cultural values.  Many thanks to 
Kent Rasmussen for this contribution!!  

-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Twain Forum [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Kent Rasmussen
Sent: Thursday, September 12, 2013 4:28 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Dear Mark Twain

On Sunday, September 22, I'll be speaking about Dear Mark Twain: Letters = from 
His Readers at Vroman's bookstore in Pasadena, Calif. My talk will = begin 
shortly after 4:00 pm. Vroman's is located at 695 E. Colorado = Boulevard, very 
near the well-known Pasadena Playhouse. For further = information, see 
http://www.penusa.org/go-west-reading-series-2

It would be wonderful to see some of you there, but at the moment, I = can't 
think of a single Forum member who lives near Pasadena. I live 50 = miles from 
there myself. I didn't even want to drive to Pasadena to see = Val Kilmer 
perform his "Citizen Twain" show. On the plus side, my show = won't charge 
admission.

Incidentally, I'd love to hear from people who have read Dear Mark = Twain. The 
book has been out for nearly six months now, and I get the = impression that it 
is misperceived as little more than a collection of = frivolous fan letters. 
This, despite the fact that the first page of its = introduction states, "This 
volume is not a collection of `fan mail,' but = rather a broadly representative 
cross section of the wide range of = opinions, feelings, and subjects expressed 
in all the letters Clemens = received from readers." Oh, well ... I'm sure I'm 
not the first author = who feels his books are misunderstood.

Kent