num_pages: 288
description: These seven sketches are unmistakably Twain, displaying his characteristic energy, imagination, and sense of fun, as well as the darkly satirical edge that marks all his work. His targets range from the difficulty of learning German, expressed in a three act play where two young lovers areobliged to conduct their courtship in beginning German, to the incompetence of military command, found in a sketch called "Luck" in which it is revealed that a celebrated general's most lauded battle stratagem resulted from his confusing his right hand with his left. Perhaps the best known story inthis collection is "The Private History of a Campaign That Failed," one of the few pieces Twain ever wrote about his experiences in the Civil War. His friend William Dean Howells, on reading this striking autobiographical narrative, wrote to Twain, "It was immensely amusing, with such a bloody bitof heartache in it." As Anne Bernays writes in her introduction to this volume, " 'The Private History of a Campaign That Failed' is a merry tale about shattered innocence and slaughter, unmatched in the care and handling." A fascinating collection of captivating and thoughtful tales.
language: English
title: Merry Tales (1892)
titlecomplete: Merry Tales (1892) (The Oxford Mark Twain)
genres: American, Collections, Short Stories
ratings_count: 18
publisher: Oxford University Press