Rumors of My Death…

Buckle up for the 100th anniversary of the death of Mark Twain... in 2010.

Even though it’s still a few years away, the National Book Foundation and the Mark Twain House and Foundation are gearing up for a whole year of celebration and contemplation of the author’s work and life in the year that commemorates “the centennial of his death and the 175th anniversary of his birth.”

Often considered the father of modern American literature, Twain was the first to make extensive use of the vernacular. He explored a wide variety of themes intrinsic to American life, including racism, social pretension, literary pretension, independence, humor, and societal and religious subversion. Each of these themes runs through Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the novel which marks the highpoint of his literary career. To quote Ernest Hemingway on the book: “All American literature comes from that. There was nothing before. There has been nothing as good since.”

As Mark Twain’s body of work, unmatched in its breadth, originality, and comprehension, continues to be widely read throughout the country, it retains its place among the shared experiences that define what it means to be American.

You can read more about the anniversary here.

Meanwhile, if you’re itching to celebrate before then, author David Baldacci (Absolute Power, The Whole Truth) will be the guest speaker at the Mark Twain House and Museum’s winter fundraiser on Monday, March 3. The lecture will be held at 6 p.m. The Mark Twain House & Museum in Hartford, Connecticut. “A book signing and cocktail reception with Mr. Baldacci will follow in the great hall of the museum center.” Event tickets are $100 and $150 and “proceeds from the winter fundraiser help to fund the Mark Twain House education initiatives.”