Thanks for the link. I'm interested! I'm a college teacher of literature and I've recently edited an edition of Huck Finn. It may indeed be pages and pages of anger and expose (he really was sour at the end of his life)--but I'll be it will be revealing and will add to Twain studies.

I am a bit bemused at the hubris of the man-how did he know anyone would care 100 years after his death?

Can someone recommend a good biography of Twain please? I was introduced to Tom Sawyer when only about five years old as ancient copies of it and Huck Finn had been given to us by my US G Grandmother. It is the only book I remember my Mother reading to me. I feel that several volumes of auto-bio by an embittered old man might be too much.

I definitely want to take a look at this when it comes out -- but I'll wait for a library copy. As Twain is considered a local writer here in CT, I'm sure there will be a good fuss made over the books and plenty of media coverage.

Cece, I thought the same thing! But think how satisfied he'd be to know he's still famous 100 years later.

Cece and Sheriz - I wondered about Twain's 100 year stipulation, too. Makes me wonder if he didn't come up with it as a long-term marketing plan meant to rekindle interest in his work if he had fallen into disfavor.

Marita - I read somewhere that the manuscript is about 5,000 pages in length - yikes! That should indeed add to the Twain studies.

Vee - I have not read any biographies of Twain, so have none to recommend - sorry. Hope someone can help you out.

Off topic - it was in the middle 90's for temps here in central Minnesota yesterday - very warm for May. Hard to believe I had to clear my car windows of snow only a couple of weeks ago. Gone from the arctic to the tropics in two weeks time.

For those who like audio books - Ken Burns did a biographical series for PBS on Mark Twain. I have it on cassette tapes, and my husband and I enjoyed it immensely on one of our road trips. Two English teachers...well, I guess that's what we do for fun! I checked amazon and it is available on CD as well as the old fashioned cassettes. At least I'm not pushing an 8-track!

thyrkas, where are you in Minnesota? I am in St. Paul. It was 95 here yesterday and yes only two weeks ago we still had the heat on inside. . .!

veer, I'd recommend Mark Twain: A Life by Ron Powers. It is a really good, updated and comprehensive biography. I noted a new one out which I haven't read yet but which has good reviews: Michael Sheldon's Mark Twain: Man in White. It covers his last years and no doubt was timed to correspond with the release of the autobiography

Seeing as Twain was very aware of marketing, I bet you are right, thyrkas.

Anybody live near Stillwater? Dear college friend ended up there, and when DS played in Junior olympic volleyball nationals in Minneapolis, I got to visit one evening. What a lovely town!

Marita - I live in a small town called Zimmerman about 30 miles northwest of Mpls, so not "up north". A friend and I attended a lecture by Pulitzer Prize winner Marilynne Robinson given in Plymouth, MN, on May 7th, and drove home in the snow that night! Had to brush the snow off my car the next morning.

Veronica - Thanks for mentioning the Ken Burn series about Twain done on PBS. Didn't know there was an audio version available - yay!

CC- Agreed - Stillwater is a beautiful town. Access to it is governed by a couple of bridges over the St Croix Rver, a tributary of the Mississippi. The bridges have been under construction for a while, so traffic has been a challenge.

marita. thanks for the information. I've found a second-hand site with a copy for sale here in the UK, and have ordered it.

thyrkas, we almost never have temps in the 90's here and after a very cold winter and spring we had to lie in the shade panting when it reached the 70's a few days ago. Unusually for England, what we lack is rain. None at all since the end of April and before that only a few drops over Easter. The earth and grass are becoming parched.

Vee - When a friend and I visited London in Aug 2004 we packed for cool, rainy weather. Each of us brought one pair of shorts just in case there was a warm day. Wouldn't you know, the temps were in the 90's the entire time we were there! We washed out our clothes in the bathroom sink at the end of each day. We still had a marvelous time, but the idea of London in August is forever connected with hot temps!

The Ron Powers book has just arrived; very speedy by the usual creaking standards of the Royal Mail ('though I understand the US Mail is also on its hands and knees or maybe crawling through the dust).
A densely produced paperback with print just visible to the naked eye. It may be a slow read but it will be interesting.
Yesterdays 'Today' on BBC radio (flagship news prog) ran a piece on the upcoming Twain autobio and interviewed the 'man in charge'.
thyrkas, that must have been the last hot summer. It rained for about 20 mins yesterday so the dust was laid and we are now told to expect drought-like conditions until the Autumn.