{"product_id":"huck-finns-america-mark-twain-and-the-era-that-shaped-his-masterpiece-9781439186961","title":"Huck Finn's America: Mark Twain and the Era That Shaped His Masterpiece","description":"\u003cp\u003eA provocative  exuberant  and deeply researched investigation into Mark Twains writing of Huckleberry Finn  which turns on its head everything we thought we knew about Americas favorite icon of childhood.  In Huck Finns America  award-winning biographer Andrew Levy shows how modern readers have been misunderstanding Huckleberry Finn for decades. Twains masterpiece  which still sells tens of thousands of copies each year and is taught more than any other American classic  is often discussed either as a carefree adventure story for children or a serious novel about race relations  yet Levy argues convincingly it is neither. Instead  Huck Finn was written at a time when Americans were nervous about youth violence and uncivilized bad boys  and a debate was raging about education  popular culture  and responsible parenting  casting Hucks now-celebrated freedom in a very different and very modern light. On issues of race  on the other hand  Twains lifelong fascination with minstrel shows and black culture inspired him to write a book not about civil rights  but about races role in entertainment and commerce  the same features upon which much of our own modern consumer culture is also grounded. In Levys vision  Huck Finn has more to say about contemporary children and race that we have ever imaginedif we are willing to hear it.  An eye-opening  groundbreaking exploration of the character and psyche of Mark Twain as he was writing his most famous novel  Huck Finns America brings the past to vivid  surprising life  and offers a persuasiveand controversialargument for why this American classic deserves to be understood anew.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45951535153205,"sku":"ByrdShop_1439186960","price":63.27,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9781439186961.jpg?v=1788112407","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/huck-finns-america-mark-twain-and-the-era-that-shaped-his-masterpiece-9781439186961","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}