The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West [Hardcover]

Sid Fleischman (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

"Mark Twain was born fully grown, with a cheap cigar clamped between his teeth." So begins Sid Fleischman's ramble-scramble biography of the great American author and wit, who started life in a Missouri village as a barefoot boy named Samuel Clemens.

Abandoning a career as a young steamboat pilot on the Mississippi River, Sam took a bumpy stagecoach to the Far West. In the gold and silver fields, he expected to get rich quick. Instead, he got poor fast, digging in the wrong places. His stint as a sagebrush newspaperman led to a duel with pistols. Had he not survived, the world would never have heard of Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn—or red-headed Mark Twain.

Samuel Clemens adopted his pen name in a hotel room in San Francisco and promptly made a jumping frog (and himself) famous. His celebrated novels followed at a leisurely pace; his quips at jet speed. "Don't let schooling interfere with your education," he wrote.

Here, in high style, is the story of a wisecracking adventurer who came of age in the untamed West; an ink-stained rebel who surprised himself by becoming the most famous American of his time. Bountifully illustrated.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 5–9—This biography covers enough of Samuel Clemens's youth for readers to appreciate how autobiographical Twain's later novels were, but the seven years that the writer spent meandering the Wild West are at the heart of the book. Fleischman chronicles Clemens's various bouts of gold fever and get-rich-quick schemes in the Nevada Territory and the San Francisco area, but shows that it was always his newspaper writing that provided stability. At age 30, Clemens was reborn as Mark Twain when his short story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" was accepted by a magazine and drew popular acclaim. An "Afterstory" provides brief information on Twain's subsequent marriage and the publication of the novels for which he is most famous. Although similar in scope to Kathryn Lasky's A Brilliant Streak: The Making of Mark Twain (Harcourt, 1998), Fleischman's account is more engaging as he slips easily into Twain's drawling cadences. The illustrations and photographs are rich and varied, and the back matter is a work of art in itself: the time line, annotated bibliography, and references will prove useful to report writers, and the inclusion of "The Celebrated Jumping Frog…" is an extra treat.—Kim Dare, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* When Mark Twain first started giving speeches, the poster advertising them read, “Doors open at 7. The trouble begins at 8.” This is the spirit in which Fleischman writes about Twain, talking about him as an author, of course, but also as steamboat pilot, a journalist, a prospector, and a lecturer—in other words, as an adventurer who didn’t mind a little trouble. In keeping with this theme, Fleischman doesn’t dwell on Twain’s best-known books, featuring Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn, but spends most of his time on Twain’s earlier years, showing how young Samuel Clemens’ myriad adventures became the building blocks for his stories. With a Twainian lilt to the prose, the book mingles deftly shaped research with snippets from Twain’s writings. One of Fleischman’s goals is to show Twain’s noted wit; today’s kids, however, may not find some of Twain’s writing particularly amusing, its humor disappearing in the mists of time. What will probably delight readers more are Twain’s amazing exploits aboard stagecoaches and steamboats, making and losing fortunes, and trying to find his place in the world. Numerous illustrations—photos, cartoons, and memorabilia—and solid, well-sourced back matter add to the enjoyment, as does a sampler of Twain’s work. Grades 5-8. --Ilene Cooper

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow Books; 1St Edition edition (July 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061344311
• ISBN-13: 978-0061344312
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #225,395 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #60 in Books > Children's Books > Biographies > Literary
  • #97 in Books > Children's Books > History > United States > 1800s

More About the Author

Since his autobiography, The Abracadabra Kid: A Writer's Life, was published in 1996, Sid Fleischman has been stealing the spotlight with his exuberant brand of nonfiction. Sir Charlie: Chaplin, the Funniest Man in the World is Fleischman's fourth true tale, following the widely acclaimed The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West and the best-selling Escape! The Story of The Great Houdini.
Fleischman's books have been made into films, performed as plays, and translated into nineteen languages. The author was awarded the Newbery Medal for The Whipping Boy.
Sid Fleischman lives in Santa Monica, California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Book for any age, October 15, 2008

By 

Connie the Book Reviewer (Vancouver, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West (Hardcover)

While this book is written for teens it doesn't matter because it does an exceptional job of telling the story of Mark Twain's life and the Wild West. Amazon and the critical reviews indicate it is for ages 9-12 but it easily goes higher, through middle school, to paint a picture of this character's life. Plus, Sid Fleischman is nothing shy of a genius when it comes to writing. He's givens readers engaging and thought provoking books. This book is brilliant.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Don't let schooling interfere with your education." Mark Twain, March 28, 2010

By 

J. Guild (Toronto,Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West (Hardcover)

On March 18,I was driving to a bookstore with my daughter and one of the things I was saying to here was that in school we had never learned about one of my favourite writers.In Canada,American literature was not part of the curriculum .The attitude was that English Literature had to come from England;because we were part of the British Empire and real literature consisted of Shakespear,Stevenson,Kipling,Dickens,Scott,Byron,Swift,and such;and that American writers just didn't measure up.It wasn't till I finished my "education" that I began to find and love writers like Twain,Hemingway,Steinbeck,Caldwell,Mitchell,and the many other writers that became my favorites.
Anyway, as we were about to leave the store,my daughter came up to me with Sid Fleischman's book "The Trouble Begins at 8" in her hand."I suppose you've read this",she said.Of course,the caricature of Mark Twain on the cover got my attention ,but neither the book,nor the name of Fleischman, was familiar to me.Having read most of Twain's books,I immediately bought it.
What a surprise I was in for,to say the least. Although it states on the dust jacket ,that it is for ages 9-12,I found it a exellent book for all ages.Fleischman is a wonderful writer,and the approach he takes keeps the reader's interest from beginning to end.The book is really a biography and much more than just an accounting of Twain's life.He tells us many things about Twain that are different and interesting.It is filled with photographs and illustrations that I simply had not seen before.There is a detailed "Mark Twain Time Line" that is very helpful and which ,along with References and a Bibliography that make it an excellent reference resource on the life and works of Twain.
While I thought that it was quite a coincidence to find this book after having discussed Twain with my daughter;after I finished reading the book,I deecided to read up on the author Sid Fleischman.Talk about coincidences!!!I found out that he had just passed away on March 17th, at the age of 90,the day before I bought his book.
Twain has to be one of America's most frequently quoted characters.This coincidental passing of of Sid Fleischman reminded me of two quotes of Twain's: "In 1897,James Ross Clemens.a cousin of mine,was seriously ill two or three weeks ago in London,but is well now.The report of my illness,grew out of his illness,the report of my death was an exaggeration." Many versions of this famous quip have been attributed to Mark Twain;this version appears to be the most authorative.
Another time,July 13,1907,in an interview in the New York Times ,he said,"For two years past I have been planning my funeral,but I have changed my mind and have postponed it."
This is a marvellous book and sure to be enjoyed by any Mark Twain fan.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars lots of fun and info, January 2, 2010

By 

Pamela M. Hoer - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West (Hardcover)

Well, seeing that our author is a great story teller i expected this book to be ok, and it was. there is plenty of funny stories that mix perfectly with info about Mark Twains life, or lack thereof. I thought this book was great and i recommend it.