*~Can't Stop Reading~* discussion

Enjoy our 1001 books May read.

I have already read this numerous times but I was playing trivia the other day and one of the trivia questions was (view spoiler)["What did they change Jim into in later copies of this book?". Now I had never heard of this but apparently they turned Jim into a robot! (hide spoiler)] Truly awful what some people come up with. This is one of my favorite childhood books and if I came across one of these copies (supposedly including illustrations and everything) I would be upset at this mistreatment of a classic.

Was this book any good? I've heard different things about it and I'm little hesitant to read it because I don't know if it's for me or not.

I've heard many great things. Hope to read near the end of the month.

This is one of the classics that I've actually read. AND, I've read it recently - as in the last three years or so. Yet, I can't seem to remember it. ??? So, Imagonna read it agin! :)

http://www.goodreads.com/reader/478-a...

So far it is drawing me in.

Me too. Although, I'll admit that I'm having a tough time with the term nigger. I realize it's a period piece, and that it was common for the time. But, it's got such negative connotations to it now, that I almost feel guilty just for reading the word. And, I don't like how Jim has been portrayed. It's clever that the dialect was written in such a way as to give him his own unique voice, but it slows me down so much that it makes Jim "sound" dumb and slow in my mind. And, he doesn't strike me as dumb.

Sunny wrote: "Me too. Although, I'll admit that I'm having a tough time with the term nigger. I realize it's a period piece, and that it was common for the time. But, it's got such negative connotations to it..."

That is one of the reason that they changed the book in some modern printings, still think they could have done some judicial editing and brought the book into modern times without changing the integrity of the book.

Why does Huck Finn give all of his money to the judge in the beginning of the book? I don't understand that part.

Miranda wrote: "Why does Huck Finn give all of his money to the judge in the beginning of the book? I don't understand that part."

I think it was so his dad couldn't just assume custody of his money and spend it all on liquor.

So, I'm about half way through it, and I'm still just having a real tough time with the whole nigger thing. I mean, there's the part where (view spoiler)[Jim talks about how when he gets to a free state he's going to buy his wife, then they can buy their two kids, (hide spoiler)] then there's the part where (view spoiler)[Huck says you can't teach a nigger to argue (hide spoiler)] and then the part where (view spoiler)[Huck says it's not natural for niggers to love their kids as much as white people (hide spoiler)] and so on and so on.

Beside that point, I can't root for a kid who lies as much as he does and (view spoiler)[fakes his own death so he can run away (hide spoiler)].

I'm going to start calling the neighborhood kids "rapscallions." LOL! What an awesome word!

Done, but it's definitely not my kind of story...
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...

I've read this book numerous times!! I love it!!! Definitely a classic worth reading. I love all the mischief he gets into! for those having a difficult time with the terminology used for the blacks in this book, it is kind of difficult to get around.. but you also have to realize that makes the book more authentic.. that was the term used back then (not one of the shining moments for our country... but, nonetheless.. that was what people called them..)

At first I was also shocked with the terminology, but I agree with Kiah that it makes the novel more authentic. They didn't know any better in the 1800's.

I first read this book in high school and I don't think I fully appreciated Twain back then. What a great read the second time around. I want to float down a river and have exciting adventures with Huck and Jim... !

I read this book in elementary school and then in middle school and I really hated it! Then in grad school I read it again and I loved it!

I just found a new appreciation for it when I was older. Huck is just a boy and he repeats things that he has heard. He believes what his elders say. There is so much more to Huck and Jim's relationship that I didn't see before.

Anyone else having a hard time getting into this book? I feel like I can't get motivated to read this.

I'm struggling with the dialect particularly when Jim is speaking, finding I really have to concentrate on it. Otherwise I am enjoying it, read Tom Sawyer loads as a kid but never started on Huck!

Yes, I had to slow WAAAAAAY down to get through what Jim was saying. Sometimes it helps to just blast through it really fast while reading out loud. But, it honestly doesn't help often enough to make it worthwhile to keep trying. LOL!

I have never enjoyed this book and cannot for the life of me think why it is so revered. It is dull, old fashioned and slow. Not sure if I have ever bothered to finish it which is not like me.

My main emotional issue with this book was the use of the word nigger. I just saw this version today (which sounds hilarious, by the way) where they replaced every instance of the word nigger with the word robot. So... Huck Finn ran away with Jim the robot. LOL!

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13...

Honestly, I HATED this book SO much. This is my least favorite book of all time. Sorry if I'm offending anyone, this is just my opinion.

The book was banned in the south when published because it was seen as antislavery. I wonder if the constant use of the n word was meant to point out the dehumanizing nature of slavery. The fact that Jim is one of the few adults Huck encounters that could be called noble makes the word stand out even more.