THE LIFE AND TIMES OF MARK TWAIN

There was no one like Mark Twain, a point that Shelden hammers home in multiple ways. Twain’s books are classics, never out of print, and he himself was a public institution with a worldwide following. This college-level course skims through Twain’s life and times with casual aplomb. But the listener only occasionally senses the fire in Twain’s eyes and soul and mind because the professor reads in a gentle and measured tone, not as if he is speaking to a classroom full of people, but rather to a book club with only a few people there. It’s a rich history, though, and a nicely laid-out booklet with many photos accompanies the package. D.R.W. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2012]