I'm sorry, I'm procrastinating at work and only have a minute to check my
email.  Can you give me a summary of what is new about this edition of Tom
Sawyer?  I'm SUCH a huge fan of the original Tom Sawyer -- I think it is
very overlooked (mainly because Huck Finn is such a classic).


On Thu, Jan 17, 2013 at 3:51 PM, Mark Twain Forum List Administrator <
[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> _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.
>
> Many books reviewed on the Mark Twain Forum are available at discounted
> prices from the Twain Web Bookstore. Purchases from this site generate
> commissions that benefit the Mark Twain Project. Please visit
> <http://www.twainweb.net>
>
> 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 This review may not be published or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.
>