It's hard to underestimate the influence that humorist Mark Twain had on society. As a writer, humorist, lecturer, and novelist, his wit and wisdom filtered into much of society. While traveling west to view how the gold and silver rushes changed America, Samuel Clemens changed his name to Mark Twain, and in the process, transformed the face of American literature. His seminal work, Huckleberry Finn dealt with the prickly issues of race and injustice, but the book has been hailed by historians as one of the great American novels of all time. There were early attempts to ban the novel because of its tough veracity of racist language and subject matter, and such attempts even continue to this day. Other notable works include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, and The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. The name Mark Twain was, by many accounts, an homage of sorts to Clemens's days working on a riverboat in his native Mississippi. There, it was something the river boat workers yelled as they marked the water looking for unsafe shallow areas. The most popular U.S. citizen of his time, this legendary man is still an American favorite, especially of collectors. A rare 1883 first edition of Life on the Mississippi in excellent condition, for example will set you back about 1,200 dollars. Many of his other works, however, are available in the ballpark of just one dollar. As is the case with many prolific artists, Mark Twain is easily collectible due to the enormous number of works he produced.
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