Mark Twain: A Biography

Returning to America after debt, grief, and financial recovery, Mark Twain is welcomed like a conquering hero, though the memories of Hartford keep him from going back. He settles at 14 West Tenth Street in New York, where his new home becomes both refuge and stage set, drawing admirers, reporters, publishers, and opportunists while his own wit and impatience keep the household in comic motion. As his literary value rises and Harper & Brothers compete for his work, Twain grows thinner and more exhausted under the strain of constant dinners, speeches, and public demands. At the height of his fame, he becomes more than a humorist: in club speeches and public addresses, he speaks as a conscience of the nation, praising fairness, mocking corruption, and challenging imperial hypocrisy in China, politics, and war. His Lincoln celebration speech blends comedy with national healing, honoring sacrifice on both sides of the Civil War and celebrating reconciliation. Yet his reforming instincts sharpen into fury in essays such as "To the Person Sitting in Darkness" and "The War Prayer," where he exposes violence, missionary hypocrisy, and the hidden savagery beneath patriotic piety. In quieter moments, he retreats to Dublin, New Hampshire, where grief, memory, invention, and friendship briefly restore his spirit. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.