Book excerpt: Perennially listed among the classics of American literature, Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885) broke new ground by allowing a teenage boy to narrate his own story. The son of a cruel town drunkard, Huck Finn vividly describes his friendship with Tom Sawyer, his resolve to run away from his abusive father, and his decision to join a runaway slave named Jim in a search for freedom. Jim and Huck's days and nights on a raft floating down the Mississippi River form one of the most evocative stories of interracial bonding ever written, and the bizarre characters they encounter in their journey are memorably sketched. Though comical in places, ultimately the book warns about the price of immoral social conformity. Editor Alan Gribben explains the historical and literary context of Twain's novel and vigorously defends it against the many critics who fault its language, relationships, and conclusion. Gribben also supplies a helpful guide to Twain's satirical targets. This Original Text Edition faithfully follows the wording of the first edition.