Reviews with content warning for Slavery - The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

73 reviews

disauci's review against another edition

adventurous funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was a fun book. It's not without its flaws, of course. It was written by Mark Twain in the 19th century and while it was progressive for the time, it is still racist looking back. Its explorations of death, childhood, and relationships were beautiful and it's easy to relate to Huck Finn in an odd way.

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abookhunter's review against another edition

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adventurous funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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shoshin's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I reread this book for the first time in years after reading James by Percival Everett. I was curious how the two books lined up, and couldn't recall after all this time what the major events were in Huckleberry Finn. I had completely forgotten the weird part at the end where Huck pretends to be Tom. I had also forgotten the sheer volume of times the n-word gets used. It was very unpleasant.

James is a book for adults. Huckleberry Finn is a book for children. Both wrestle with race in very different ways, but ultimately, Huckleberry Finn misses the mark badly. I prefer James for a number of reasons.

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leahgustafson's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

My primary motivation for reading Huck Finn was because James has been one of my most anticipated books of 2024. I figured if I was going to ever pick up Huck Finn again, now was the time.
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I’m pretty sure this was summer reading homework in high school. Without any discussion, I’m not sure what I would have really gotten out of it at that point…probably nothing. I am really glad I chose to revisit it now, though!
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While you definitely don’t have to read Huck Finn prior to reading James, it has given me some context/insight that I otherwise wouldn’t have had. I also think the comparison between the two perspectives is extremely thought provoking and will lead to great discussion (especially for book clubs, buddy reads, etc).
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I was pleasantly surprised by the readability of Huck Finn. It reads like an adventure story, and yet, it explores some BIG themes—slavery, humanity, morality, religion, etc. I also love how this story is told through a (poor, uneducated) child’s eyes. The cruelty, ugliness, and hypocrisy of this time in our country’s history is glaring as Huck repeatedly questions and struggles to make sense of the world around him. All of the “good/moral” members of society condone slavery, and Huck grapples with what might be “wrong” with himself for seeing Jim’s humanity and wanting to help him. As an elementary teacher and a mom, I find this really fascinating! It is important to mention, of course, that Huck doesn’t always make mature choices and doesn’t always treat Jim with respect.
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There are some characters that I found pretty unlikeable and I questioned their purpose, but all in all, I’m glad I read this one and enjoyed it more than I thought I would!
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Check out what I'm reading next on Instagram @LeahsLitReview!

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m4rtt4's review against another edition

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adventurous funny tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

Full of stereotypes and racist as hell, but looking past the time-specific problems the storytelling was actually pretty good and I even had fun at times.

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qqjj's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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drummer134's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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sonnetson's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Of the few "Great American Novel" contendors I've sofar read, this is the weakest. It is, still a good book, however. The first two acts in particular are very tight; there's the conflict between Huck and attempts to 'sivilize' him, when sivilization really means adherence to the brutal southern slave society. This plays out until the end of the book, with all its spectacle, and critique of spectacle as a part of this violence, until Tom Sawyer leads us in the greatest spectacle of them all. This this third act is hard to read, infuriating at times; the book, so much about cruelty, makes Huck and Tom Jim's torturers. Especially when it is revealed that Jim has been free for the whole "adventure." This flip does make the whole book kind of ricochet back: Huck Finn the book is an adventure, and it is the spectacle it critiques so heavily. Where that leaves me, I'm not quite sure. I do know that this is an important book, and I believe pretty fervently that it is, despite some blunders, a pretty staunchly antiracist book as well. This is my third time reading it, first as an adult, and I have to say, it's enjoyable.

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liline163's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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kcc810's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

1.5

The story is hard to follow, rambling, too much dialect. The middle third is mildly funny I guess, but the racism and racial language are so heavy it feels difficult to tolerate. Most of the characters are incredibly flat and lack dimension. Tom Sawyer in the last third is one of the most obnoxious characters ever written. Risking someone’s life and freedom for child’s play? Not the entertaining story you might expect from a story that I’ve heard proclaimed to be anti-slavery. Twain seems very tied to his time, this novel is anything but timeless. If you want to read it for a glimpse into a period in history, I’d still suggest you choose another novel that focuses less on childish folly.

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