A Conneticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Jacket Blurb: One of the greatest satires in American literature, Mark Twain's 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court' begins when Hank Morgan, a skilled mechanic in a nineteenth-century New England arms factory, is struck on the head during a quarrel and awakens to find himself among the knights and magicians of King Arthur's Camelot. The 'Yankee' vows brashly to "boss the whole country inside of three weeks" and embarks on an ambitious plan to modernize Camelot with 19th c. industrial inventions like electricity and gunfire. It isn't long before all hell breaks loose!

Written in 1889, Mark 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court' is one of literature's first genre mash-ups and one of the first works to feature time travel. It is one of the best known Twain stories, and also one of his most unique. Twain uses the work to launch a social commentary on contemporary society, a thinly veiled critique of the contemporary times despite the Old World setting.

While the dark pessimism that would fully blossom in Twain's later works can be discerned in 'A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, ' the novel will nevertheless be remembered primarily for its wild leaps of imagination, brilliant wit, and entertaining storytelling.

Read as an audio book.

This past spring The Husband and I took a jaunt down to southeaster Missouri for a late-winter (for us) get away. It was nigh spring in Southern Missouri, and while the trees were quite leafed out nor the early flowers blooming, there wasn't any snow. We stopped in Hannibal, MO, and spent part of a day immersed in Mark Twain's world. Which lead to the realization that I've only read Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. The Husband noted A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court was an enjoyable read. It took a few more months, but I slid it into the lineup.

First noting - I greatly enjoyed the narrators performance, cadence and voices. It was a delight to listen to and I was quite bummed when the book concluded. He had the perfect voice for a commute read.

The story itself was fascinating. Despite being written nearly 100 years ago, it amazed me how much of the authors political commentary was still apropos for today. The astute reader will pick up on Mark Twain's observations and viewpoints from the late 1800's, but gosh darn if some things just don't change.

I did look this up, and while not the "first" science fiction book (that is still thought to be Frankenstein), this is considered the first time-travel book. This was well executed - probably more so than some "modern day" time travel books I've read. This isn't to say the book is perfect in all regards, it's not by any stretch of the imagination. The feasibility of one person being able to re-create the telephone, trains, gas lines, bombs and more did push the bounds of reality a tich. From a 21st Century standpoint. From a 1800's or early 1900's view? Maybe it was more believable.

This book made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me think. I'm glad I read this and I regret not picking this up earlier, but perhaps I would not have enjoyed it as much as I did. Recommended from a historical perspective.


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