Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: A Signature Performance by Elijah Wood

By: Mark Twain

Narrated by: Elijah Wood

Length: 10 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

Earphones Award Winner (AudioFile Magazine)

Ernest Hemingway said, “All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn". One hundred years after its author’s death, this classic remains remarkably modern and poignantly relevant. In this new edition, Elijah Wood reads Huck in a youthful voice that may be the closest interpretation to Twain’s original intent. His performance captures the excitement and confusion of adolescence and adventure. Best of all, the immediacy of Wood’s energetic reading sweeps listeners up and makes them feel as though they’re along for the ride, as Huck and Jim push their raft toward freedom.

Public Domain (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

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Public Domain (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Elijah Wood’s performance is my nominee for the Narrators’ Hall of Fame. Wood’s unself-conscious reading doesn’t sound like a reading at all. He creates an entire world filled with people who cross class and color lines. His accents range from British to faux-British to all manner of regional affectations, twangs, and drawls. Wood’s delivery makes Mark Twain’s delicious wit and twisty language sound completely natural, especially as Huck invents plausible words to suit the moment. The journey down the Mississippi with Huck and Jim is pure pleasure, as the boy who won’t be "sivilized" and the runaway slave encounter scoundrels, slip out of scrapes, and invent outrageous tales. The listening couldn’t be better if Huck read the story himself." (AudioFile Magazine)

Masterful Narration

Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain is nonpareil, but Elijah Wood's dramatization verges on genius. His style brings nuance to the fore that was simply unavailable to me when I read the book (silently) to myself. It added color to an already colorful peice of work. Congratulations, Mr. Wood.

Fabulous

Elijah Wood is very talented. Huck Finn is always gonna be a good listen, but the nuances Elijah Wood uses in his narration and the energy in his voice make this one of the most enjoyable audio books I have ever listened to. Make sure you listen carefully to Elijah's treatment of the dialect for "the King!" Check it out - you won't be disappointed!

A classic very enjoyably performed

If you could sum up Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: A Signature Performance by Elijah Wood in three words, what would they be?

I would choose freeing, educational, and fun.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Huck of course. The youth is surprisingly wise and innocent at the same time allowing for some outrageous circumstance.

What does Elijah Wood bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I am very pleased I experienced Huck Finn through Mr. Woods' masterful performance. His accent, cadence, and affectation of each character was a wonder in and of itself.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

This young man was really treated poorly in many instances specifically by his Paps. By today's standards the boy would have been traumatized for life. All this he took in stride. Yes, I felt very sorry for him on more than one occasion.

Any additional comments?

I would highly recommend this performance specifically for the narration of Elijah Woods. However I will add it would be difficult to reconcile the use of the common term for black slave at the time to how I raise my children today. Although I get it I am afraid they might not.

Brilliant novel, brilliantly narrated

The story, of course, is familiar to most, so I won't comment on that. Elijah Wood is an absolutely flawless narrator! There is a lot of dialect in this book, and it's important to character development, to creating nuance, time and place. In short, the dialects aren't trivial. Elijah Wood does a masterful job of rendering each character in their unique voice, of capturing the subtle difference that Mr. Twain himself identifies as important. This is a telling that merits repeated and regular listenings.

Man, Elijah Wood is so awesome!

The story is fantastic but Elijah Wood really brings it home. Read it and laugh and giggle and don't be offended at the use of some words because they're not meant to be offensive. Gosh though, Mark Twain was hilarious!

Excellent performance but Twain belabored the ending

Elijah Wood’s energetic and faithful rendering of the different dialects is the jewel in the crown of this mostly delightful audio book. I had to fast forward through some of the last few chapters however where Tom Sawyer makes a mess I’ve liberating poor patient Jim torturing him and us the listeners over nearly a dozen chapters. But Wood’s performance lends levity to even that otherwise exhausting wild goose chase. But Twain delivers relief at last—after perhaps making us all feel just a bit more of Jim’s pain than I wanted.

Superb performance of a Mark Twain classic

I had forgotten about all the tedious and overlong sections of this novel, and how much wiser and smarter Huck Finn is, than that knucklehead Tom Sawyer. What kept me going was the fantastic portrayal of every character by the talented actor Elijah Wood. His voice is a marvel and he brought everyone to life. Well worth hearing for the quality of the performance alone.

Extra Stars for Elijah Wood.

Mr. Twain's book is a classic for a reason. The writing, story, characters, and dialogue speak for themselves. The truly special part of this particular edition of Huck Finn, is Elijah Wood's reading. After listening to hundreds of books, nobody has surprised me, or impressed me more than Elijah Wood. I hope to hear many more books read by him in the future. Highly recommend.

Great story and entertaining narration.

I considered purchasing a different version but thoroughly enjoyed the version of this version. I caught myself laughing aloud as I listened.

The NARRATOR IS AMAZING!!!

Elijah Wood really brought the book To Life! I expected this book to be boring but I was dead wrong, this book is actually great and the narrator has got to be one of the best I ever heard