Tom Sawyer
by Mark Twain, John D. Seelye · first published 1931
20% recommend77% neutral2% critical
Why HN recommends it
Vivid Southern boyhood adventure that stays readable for kids and rewards rereading as an adult; the fence-whitewashing scene is a favorite. Easy enough for language learners and for reading aloud.
Common criticism: Some readers find it a slow, boring school assignment
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Mark Twain created the memorable characters Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn drawing from the experiences of boys he grew up with in Missouri. Set by the Mississippi River in the 1840's, it follows these boys as they get into predicament after predicament. Tom's classic whitewashing of the fence has become part of American legend, and the book paints a nostalgic picture of life in the middle of the nineteenth century. Tom runs away from home to an island in the river, chases Injun Joe and his treasure, and even gets trapped in a cave for days with Becky Thatcher. The book is one of Twain's most
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I love Mark Twain, mostly because of how easy it is to rip him off and ascribe quotes to him. But also because Tom Sawyer was the first book I had read as a child that put the taste of Southern grass in my mouth and the feeling of thick humidity reaching out and strangling me. I don't always like writers from past times…
on “The Impossibility of Knowing Mark Twain” ↗Must read? 1984 and Animal Farm. Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Life on the Mississippi and Roughing It. Emma and Pride and Prejudice. Iliad, Odyssey and first half of the Aeneid. A Room With A View and The Picture of Dorian Gray. The Great…
on “Ask HN: What are some must read books?” ↗…was a kid (I went on a Mark Twain kick when I was in elementary school...no one ever told me that all of his books weren't kids books, so I read everything I could get my hands on after being hooked by Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn). Turns out Mark Twain was seditious, heretical, and quite the troublemaker all around.
on “Ask YC: What's the most inspiring sci-fi book you've read?” ↗…compelling than I was able to grasp the last time I read it. This is true for just about every Vonnegut book I've bothered to re-read. The same holds true for Mark Twain (so far). I recently re-read Tom Sawyer, which I only re-read after realizing that I couldn't really remember anything from my first reading of it. Phenomenal. There are more, I'm sure, but I'd have to give it thought. The only non-print…
on “Ask HN: Which book are you reading?” ↗Pretty much anything by Mark Twain. Even the crap because in context it is amazing. The man who wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (a great book that is racist[although the racism is not central to its purpose]) and The Adventures of Huckelberry Finn(one of the best condemnations of racism in my opinion) also wrote Tom Sawyer abroad…
on “Ask HN: What public domain books are worth reading?” ↗The passage where Tom goes to whitewash the fence is brilliant. https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/mark-twain/tom-sawyer#:~:text=T... Relatable to any kids forced to do chores.
on “The Great American Rascal: Tom Sawyer at 150” ↗I loved Mark Twain when I was a kid. Read Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn multiple times. I didn't even consider reading it to my kid when she was younger. Wasn't a good way to handle all the N words.
on “The Great American Rascal: Tom Sawyer at 150” ↗…blinking toys or computers, but mom or dad taking the time every day or night (or both!) to sit and read them wonderful books. One of my earliest (and fondest) memories is about my mother reading "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" to 4-year old me, even though she had had a hard day of work behind her. It got me so hooked to stories and books that I learned to read almost all by myself when I was five.
on “What Should a 4 Year Old Know? (2010)” ↗If you lack imagination and don't get out into nature much, you might not get it. But read Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn and you'll gain some understanding for how rich traditional aboriginal life was.
on “A Tuna's Worth” ↗…classics, particularly Plato's Symposium, Phaedrus, Apology and Republic. Then there are many books that I've read at least twice, almost all considered classics (from 1984 to LoTR, Great expectations to Tom Sawyer, Crime and punishment to Twenty thousand leagues under the sea, etc).
on “Ask HN: Which books have you read more than once?” ↗Great Tom Sawyer ref. It continues, "Well, I know that. And suppose there ain't. Didn't Gracie Miller fall in the kitchen fire and burn herself terrible the very next Saturday?" While Gracie Miller survives her terrible…
on “I’ve had the same supper for 10 years” ↗…blissful. So being present and patient, and not loud and pushy and "you have to" kind of thing. Be quiet and listen to them, help them to keep pets, read them books (when they are older, things like maybe Tom Sawyer) - and leave your work at work. And when they come to find you, look them in the eye and answer their questions, no matter how exhausting it might be. A big part of that for me was putting work aside…
on “On the Wildness of Children” ↗…languages, (except latin), and though I don't know the exact starting word count, I think a couple of hundred + familiarity with the book is enough for me. Some other easy and interesting books to consider are Tom Sawyer and The Hobbit, and Peter Pan.
on “Duolingo reaches $6.5B valuation on day of IPO” ↗…Island of the blue dolphins The witch of blackbird pond Johnny Tremaine (a bit older) The sign of the Beaver Charlotte’s Web Because of Winn Dixie Tuck Everlasting (sad at end) Ruby Holler The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Treasure Island The Pushcart War Maniac Magee Rascal Frindle Hatchet (Gary Paulsen) Mr. Popper’s Penguins (young) Tales of a 4th Grade Nothing (Juy Blume) Pippi Longstocking Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle…
on “The original “Bambi”” ↗Great books are often cross-cultural. We Russian kids enjoyed Tom Sawyer very much. “It”s not every day that a boy gets a chance to paint a fence”… There was (and is) a lot of buzz in Russian culture about Moby Dick though I personally failed to enjoy it. Never heard of Of…
on “What’s the strangest thing you ever found in a book?” ↗