It is a terrific work, although I seem to remember (what I perceived as) flaws. Grabbed a PDF from Google Books Search, re-reading starting yesterday. I wonder what Clara made of the Bing Crosby version? ;-) DDD -----Original Message----- From: Mark Twain Forum [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of L T Oggel/FS/VCU Sent: Sunday, September 06, 2009 1:24 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Conn Yankee Here's a piece from yesterday's Wash. Post that's perfectly timed for our recent/on-going discussion on Conn Yankee: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/04/AR200909 0403802.html?referrer=emailarticle Henry Nash Smith's book on CYankee, Mark Twain's Fable of Progress, left a strong impression on me when I first read it, and it still does seem to hit the nail on the head. Smith's book, one of (few) literary studies that endures, might be old but it's not out of date, like the Twain book it examines. Smith's book is sub-titled, Political and Economic Ideas in A Connecticut Yankee. Terry Oggel