Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
    The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
    The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
    Audiobook7 hours

    The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

    Written by Mark Twain

    Narrated by Norman Dietz

    4.5/5

    ()

    Switch to ebook

    About this audiobook

    Well over a century has passed since the publication of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in 1876, but time has done little to diminish the appeal and enjoyment of this classic story of growing up in midwestern America. The world Mark Twain envisioned for his precocious hero is a "boy-perfect" one, where life is perpetual vacation, where good and evil are clearly defined, awe-inspiring contradictions, and where the joys of independent discovery always outweigh the severity of punishment. "Although my book is intended for the entertainment of boys and girls, I hope it will not be shunned by men and women on that account, for part of my plan has been to try to pleasantly remind adults of what they once were themselves, and of how they felt and thought and talked, and what queer enterprises they sometimes engaged in."-Mark Twain
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateOct 15, 2007
    ISBN9781449800628
    Author

    Mark Twain

    Mark Twain, who was born Samuel L. Clemens in Missouri in 1835, wrote some of the most enduring works of literature in the English language, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc was his last completed book—and, by his own estimate, his best. Its acquisition by Harper & Brothers allowed Twain to stave off bankruptcy. He died in 1910. 

    More audiobooks from Mark Twain

    Related to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

    Related audiobooks

    Action & Adventure Fiction For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Little House On The Controversy: Laura Ingalls Wilder's Name Removed From Book Award

      Jun 25, 2018

      The Association for Library Service to Children voted unanimously to strike Wilder's name from a major children's lit award over concerns about how the author referred to Native Americans and blacks.

      2 min read

    • Article

      Set Up Google Home…

      Feb 9, 2017

      As Google Home isn’t officially available in the UK, and doesn’t charge via Micro USB or USB-C, you’re going to need an adapter to use it. While some are concerned about voltage, we’ve found that a cheap US-to-UK travel adapter works just fine. You c

      2 min read

    • Article

      Valentine’s Ghost

      Jun 20, 2020

      Valentine’s Ghost
      7 min read

    • Article

      In Defense Of The Harvest

      Nov 10, 2021

      I know what you will all be thinking. It is true that I was asked to write this story by members of the current government. A government pertaining of a few politicians, lawmakers, and others who are currently subject to public scrutiny as possibly b

      10 min read

    • Article

      Table Talk

      Jun 1, 2023

      Table Talk
      11 min read

    • Article

      Four Poems

      May 1, 2019

      We found ourselves to be quite fondof the ad campaignundermining late-stage capitalism: how the sprightly old womankept bursting into private conversationsat the candlelit restaurant and shouting, You can’t eat nickels!!and then doing that little hip

      3 min read

    • Article

      Lech

      Feb 8, 2022

      Lech
      4 min read

    • Article

      The Trouble Gene

      Jul 1, 2020

      One clear thing about trouble—it can set you back to zero, a personal cone of silence. And reading, writing, listening allow entry into that troubled solitude; you disappear into it regardless t of the time or place you really are in, be it bed, kitc

      12 min read

    • Article

      A Consent (1908)

      Jul 1, 2022

      A Consent (1908)
      19 min read

    • Article

      Caught Out

      Oct 2, 2022

      Caught Out
      9 min read

    • Article

      A Double Life

      Dec 7, 2020

      Sadie is in the kitchen, already dressed in school uniform, fastening the clips on the violin she chose for her most recent birthday, when Gabriela heads downstairs the following morning. Seven years old: how the hell did that happen? Briefly, she wo

      6 min read

    • Article

      The Leather Coat

      Apr 4, 2024

      The Leather Coat
      6 min read

    • Article

      The Stackpole Legend

      Mar 1, 2024

      The Stackpole Legend
      13 min read

    • Article

      Shame the Devil

      Aug 3, 2017

      Shame is an emotion that may be most powerful in the younger years of our sinful species, requiring peers to look on our performance with either envy or a shared sense of satisfaction. But as that audience thins out as more and more contemporaries sh

      3 min read

    • Article

      Me & Davey Waters

      Jan 15, 2023

      Me & Davey Waters
      4 min read

    • Article

      Let’s Say

      Oct 7, 2022

      I magine a sticky, early August morning, around three o’clock. It is dark, the moon blocked by clouds, no streetlights, a siren in the distance, medics running to a heart attack. Imagine a man out on a bike or walking a sick dog, or maybe a woman who

      10 min read

    • Article

      Your Poetry

      May 28, 2021

      Email your poems to: (editorial@choicemag.co.uk) or post to Your Poetry, Choice, 4 Milnyard Square, Orton Southgate, Peterborough PE2 6GX There’s a train that runs on barren track, along the side & at the back,of the caravan. The children laugh & sho

      3 min read

    • Article

      Cricket League

      Sep 1, 2020

      Cricket League
      7 min read

    • Article

      All My Tomorrows

      May 10, 2022

      It was Misha’s first day minding the shop, and already she’d broken the fifth rule. Always lock the door immediately. When you had the most valuable merchandise in the universe, you had to take the utmost precautions. She hadn’t meant to disobey. It

      13 min read

    • Article

      Come with Me

      Dec 1, 2022

      Come with Me
      12 min read

    • Article

      The Five People You Meet In A Pandemic

      May 14, 2021

      The Five People You Meet In A Pandemic
      5 min read

    • Article

      Bad-Time Dimitri

      Feb 3, 2022

      Bad-Time Dimitri
      16 min read

    • Article

      Cruel Means, Bitter Ends

      Nov 10, 2021

      “In order for this speech to mean anything to me, I’ll need to dispense with the usual demagoguery and, instead, make an attempt at honesty. With this in mind, there is one thing I have to make clear. I’m not in this race to serve your interests, but

      12 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

    4.5/5

    147 ratings82 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      Never been much of a Twain fan, but TS is much more enjoyable than Huckleberry Finn. The Rockwell apintings are gorgeous.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      The reader guy was great, the story was pretty interesting sorta but Tom Sawyer the character I don’t really like. As not to spoil, he steals like a hobby, does it all the time it seems. He beats up a kid in the beginning chapter for no reason except for fun?? And when he does get punished he either gets out of it, or just doesn’t care about getting whipped. So not the best kid.
    • 5/5
      Like many young people, Tom would rather be having fun than going to school and church. This is always getting him into trouble, from which he finds unusual solutions. One of the great scenes in this book has Tom persuading his friends to help him whitewash a fence by making them think that nothing could be finer than doing his punishment for playing hooky from school. When I first read this story, it opened up my mind to the potential power of persuasion.Tom also is given up for dead and has the unusual experience of watching his own funeral and hearing what people really thought of him. That's something we all should be able to do. By imagining what people will say at our funeral, we can help establish the purpose of our own lives. Mark Twain has given us a powerful tool for self-examination in this wonderful sequence.Tom and Huck Finn also witness a murder, and have to decide how to handle the fact that they were not supposed to be there and their fear of retribution from the murderer, Injun Joe.
    • 3/5
      A fun little book with some moments of wry humor. Interesting to note things that were not known about Africa and the Middle East when this was written. The story itself is not believable, but with this author, I never thought it was supposed to be.
    • 5/5
      This is on my 100 Great Books List. What a totally delightful book that was an easy read. Once I started, it was impossible for me to stop. Mark Twain is a comedic genius. There is no question in my mind. I finished listening to/reading (did both) it on the plane to Hawaii and laughed out loud several times. I WISH that I had read this before I read Huck Finn for The Well-Educated Mind list. Huck Finn is considered the “classic” of the two, but it is really a sequel to Tom Sawyer. So, it would have made Huck Finn easier to read, IMHO. It was Tom's entrance in The Adventures of Huck Finn that made me want to learn more about him. He was a HOOT in that one! Loved this book in every way, this Blackstone audio version read by Grover Gardner was superb. I have heard this narrator before (Tozer's The Pursuit of God) and love him.
    • 5/5
      The first and only time I previously read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was back in middle-school or late elementary school. Since then I've read a lot of Mark Twain's short stories and a few of his novels. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is one of my favorite books and I've read it a pile of times but until now I'd never revisited Tom Sawyer.One of the things I love about Twain's writing is just how real and honest everything feels. Very quickly I felt myself pulled into the world of St. Peterburg. I absolutely love the flow and tone of the language. It's just so fluid and friendly. I love Twain's narrative style as he makes commentary on situations or behaviors. I can almost hear his snarky voice as he satirizes the sanctimonious behavior of some of the adults as set against the devil-may-care (yet very superstitious) attitudes of the children.I vaguely remembered bits of the larger plot of the story but as I was reading I was struck by how much this book is a compilation of shorter stories instead of one single big plot piece. Admittedly there is the overall thread of Tom and Huck and their adventures with Injun Joe, but that particular story thread often goes many chapters completely forgotten, much in the way a child will forget some of their worries and cares as soon as the next big adventure comes along.This book is definitely lighter in tone than Huckleberry Finn. It's not addressing heavy topics like slavery. But it still has plenty of weighty segments alongside the frivolous fun. There are plenty of subtle morality lessons as well as very dramatic scenes. I really enjoyed the tension as Tom and Becky sat in the dark cave watching their candle go out or the suspense as Tom and Huck sat upstairs in the haunted house waiting for Injun Joe to come up the stairs and find them hiding there. These segments were a fun balance to the light hearted adventures of boys playing pirates or whitewashing the fence.While not as outrageous as Huckleberry Finn, there are segments in this book that may be potentially offensive or off-putting to some readers. The boys do observe a grizzly murder, though it isn't described in ghastly turns. There is also a lot of talk about superstition and witchcraft and sneaking out in the middle of the night for special ceremonies for luck or play. Beyond these elements (which are quaintly fun and characteristic of the world at that time and place), the boys also run away from home and spend days cussing and smoking and when they do return home they only get mild chastisement. Tom comments how he's going to impress the other boys by pulling out his pipe and smoking around them. While the behavior doesn't get much more applause than this (and it actually makes him very sick the first time he smokes), it doesn't get particularly villainized either, which could certainly be a cause for shock in some readers. I think as long as the reader understands the context, it shouldn't be a problem. And if a parent or educator is giving this book to a young child to read, it could be a good teaching point.Being a fan of Mark Twain, I certainly have some bias, but I can wholeheartedly recommend this book. I plan on pushing it on my unsuspecting children and hope they enjoy it as much as I do. It's a true pleasure to go romping around with Tom Sawyer and his friends as they get up to adventures and into and out of trouble. If you've read it before, pick it up again and find old friends. And if you've never read it, you should definitely give it a read. It's tons of fun and definitely stands up to the test of time. As a note, there are a lot of Abridged versions out there (presumably to remove some of the potentially offensive segments). Do yourself a favor and read the unabridged version. You don't want to miss any of the fun.*****5 out of 5 stars
    • 5/5
      Loved it! It was my son's (age 11) first time hearing this story and he loved it too!
    • 4/5
      The Adventures of Tom Sawyer depicts the life of an imaginative, troublesome boy in the American West of the 1840s. The novel is intensely dramatic in its construction, taking the form of a series of comic vignettes based on Tom's exploits. These vignettes are linked together by a darker story that grows in importance throughout the novel, Tom's life-threatening entanglement with the murderer Injun Joe.
    • 4/5
      Tom Sawyer is a boy that always gets in trouble, if its swiping a pie or sneeking out late. But he gets into real trouble when he witnesses a murder with his best friend Huckleberry Finn. They swear an blood oath that they won't tell a soul what they saw. But when Muff Potter gets arrested for the murder Tom has the choice of telling everyone the truth about who really cmmited the murder of letting someone who didn't do anything die for it. After the murder is dealt with Injun Joe is a wanted man by the law. Tom and Huck hear about a treasure and they want to find it. Too bad that injun Joe is the one with it.I liked this book for lots of reasons. Mark Twain did a good job on the description of this book. He made Tom sound like the worst kid on the face of this earth and he probably is. I especially liked the ending because a boy that doesn't have a home gets one and Tom and Huck become rich.
    • 5/5
      I liked this book a lot and I think it explains the life of a boy called Tom Sawyer very well.
    • 5/5
      It is perhaps unusual to read this book aimed at boys for the first time at the age of 45, but I really enjoyed it. Tom is an appealingly mischievous boy whose adventures, fears and insecurities are fairly timeless; though written in 1876, the book could be set in the modern era in a small town or rural area with relatively few changes. The other main characters, Aunt Polly, Joe Harper, Becky Thatcher and of course Huck Finn are equally attractively drawn. From the modern perspective the character of Injun Joe is portrayed as a wholly negative and stereotypical "savage", but this is lifted by Tom's compassion towards him at the end. Very enjoyable read for all ages. 5/5
    • 5/5
      This little paperback will do until (and if) I find my first edition. Hemingway and others have said Huckleberry Finn is the classic American novel, but I think this one is head and shoulders above Huck's book.
    • 4/5
      This is a part of growing up and needs to be read earlier rather than later.
    • 5/5
      The trouble with "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" is, and always has been, its audience. Nobody knows for sure whether it was meant as a children's (more likely t(w)eenager's) book or an adult's view of a child's world. While on the mature side for the former, it lacks the depth of its successor, "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn." Yet while the sheer delight of the book makes it a treat for any audience, there are a couple of compelling reasons that everyone, at some point in their lives, should read it.First of all, the youthly viewpoint is a marvel of characterisation. Just as it seems a rare and precious wonder when a male author successfully captures the viewpoint of a female character, or vice versa, it is a notable thing when an author crafts a young character who truly lives and breathes the way someone that age would. Yes, certainly, they are many wonderful young characters in literature who are fabulous because adults and children alike see an amusing caricature of recognisable elements of childhood--think Christopher Robin and his plush menagerie, for example--but there are few so vivid that they live eternally. Mark Twain knows the young male mind, and even in an age of video games and plastic-enclosed fast-food playlands, when I read his detailed inventories of the contents of young Tom's pockets and the importance of trading such pitiful treasures as marbles and beetles to acquire more and better junk, I think, "I KNOW that kid. I teach that kid in my third grade class." Modern boys may have substituted Pokemon cards and plastic Halo figurines, but the mindset about the junk in the pockets is still the same; and, I imagine, if modern parents were far less guarded about things like letting their children roam about town after sunset and explore uncharted caves than the adults of fictional St. Petersburg were, I suspect that just as many of the young boys I know would be running away from home in the summer to play pirate.Second, the book has a very subtle hint of predestination about the whole plot, with so many Dickensian coincidences that just happen to work out for Tom and Huck, yet this is surely due not just to the influence of Twain's great literary contemporary but also, and perhaps in larger part, to the Presbyterian upbringing that Twain at times seems to admire, and at other times seems to satirise. This sense of the possibility of an overarching plan for the world (whether Heavenly or merely authorial) reaches its peak in one of the most chilling scenes near the end of the novel:"The captive had broken off the stalagmite, and upon the stump had placed a stone, wherein he had scooped a shallow hollow to catch the precious drop that fell once every three minutes with the dreary regularity of a clock tick--a dessert spoonful once in four and twenty hours. That drop was falling when the Pyramids were new; when Troy fell; when the foundations of Rome were laid; when Christ was crucified; when the Conqueror created the British empire; when Columbus sailed; when the massacre at Lexington was 'news.' It is falling now; it will still be falling when all these things shall have sunk down the afternoon of history, and the twilight of tradition, and been swallowed up in the thick night of oblivion. Has everything a purpose and a mission? Did this drop fall patiently during five thousand years to be ready for this flitting human insect's need? and has it another important object to accomplish ten thousand years to come? No matter."I'll avoid continuing the citation any further to avoid spoilers for any readers who might not yet know to which captive this passage refers or what the outcome of his fate might be; suffice it to say, what continues suggests that though we may not be certain of a purpose, we look longest at the things that might have one. This helps to explain the enduring popularity of "Tom Sawyer." While many critics cite its importance as "the book that paved the way for 'Huckleberry Finn,'" there are signs throughout of a masterful author saying, "I know what I'm doing." Leave it to Mark Twain to sum up the very significance of his writing, and of religion's role in society, by saying "no matter."If the book should be read, then, the question still remains as to who should read it. Young people are definitely capable of enjoying it, but as with its more famous sequel, the racial overtones (not only with regards to slaves, but also the portrayal of the book's "half-breed" Native American antagonist) prove troubling for many readers. I would thus recommend that it be placed into a young person's hands, not with abandon and trust as Aunt Polly does in giving Tom the "Painkiller," but with careful guidance about the historical setting and thought about the parallels in today's society. Beyond that, the vocabulary may also prove tricky for elementary readers. Middle schoolers or early high schoolers (ages 11-14) may be able to get a handle on it with a well-noted edition or a dictionary at hand, however.The Barnes and Noble edition of this book contains a biographical sketch and timeline of the author's life; an introduction by H. Daniel Peck of Vassar College; both footnotes and endnotes glossing difficult vocabulary (a bit irritatingly over-thorough for the well-read adult, though) and noting real-life places or people in Hannibal, Missouri to which the book seems to be making reference; a description of other artistic works inspired by the book; a series of citations from both contemporary and later reviews of the book, alongside a series of questions for the reader's consideration; and a bibliography for further reference on Twain.
    • 4/5
      Miss Hunt's eighth grade English class. Guess what her nickname was?
    • 3/5
      I read this in school, probably in 7th grade, because it was assigned. I was not a reader at the time and so really didn't enjoy it very much. I wanted to reread it as an adult. I believe I enjoyed it more this time although I do find Twain wordy, but authors of that time period were. I am not sure the subject of this story is one that would have ever gotten me excited. I even set the book down for many months with only 60 pages to the end. I picked it up and finished it in two quick sittings. I don't think the story is suddenly more interesting to me. I do think I was eager to put the book in my finished pile. I also have to believe that I am better now at reading classics since I have read many more the last few years.
    • 5/5
      I think more people should read this book! I read it as a young girl, and it was the book that made me love Mark Twain's writing--and classics in general, in fact. Yes, it is a boys' novel, but it can be interesting to girls as well, thank you very much. I remember this being quite an easy and suspenseful read, as well, and it contained a good mix between realistic fiction and elements of “fantasy”, of a sort—so there’s no reason not to try it!While different from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, I think this is a great, hilarious introduction to that book. Maybe because I read these two books almost simultaneously one after another, I can’t imagine *not* reading them in conjunction with one another. This book is where we first meet Huck Finn and get a little background on him, after all. And, of course, it's full of Twain's usual humor and wit. Maybe if more people would read Tom Sawyer before Huck Finn, they would understand the latter a bit better, and not feel the need to ban it or condemn it... or maybe I’m just obsessive. :)
    • 4/5
      The story was cute, but man that kid needed some discipline! It's hard to believe how wild children used to be. But it did make for an entertaining and amusing story.
    • 2/5
      This book certainly had its moments (especially with the cat asking for the medicine), although I must say overall I liked its sequel (which I listened to first) more. However, there are a few inconsistencies with the two books. In this book, the characters seem a little bit more knowledgable, or even older, although I thought this book came first—maybe it's a false assumption. They go over some things they went over in this book again in the next one, although the characters seem a lot more naive about things in the next one.
    • 5/5
      A million times better than "Huckleberry Finn."
    • 4/5
      I have mixed feelings about this novel as either adult or children's book. The introduction says that though the two books are tied, the difference between Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn is that the first is a children's book and the second is a book about a child. I'm not sure if I read this as a child--I suspect if I did, I read a censored, abridged illustrated version. And there is an issue parents should be aware of, at least if they're considering giving an unexpurgated version to a contemporary child. One is the use of negative Native American stereotypes. "Injun Joe" is said to be a "half-breed" and when a character hears Joe was planning to mutilate a woman, he comments only someone part Indian could think of doing that. The word "nigger" is also used several times in the book, and it's done casually, not in a way that would clue in a young child it's anything but an ordinary word.I've heard this issue in connection with Huckleberry Finn, and in the context of an adult book like that one, written first person from the point of view of a half-literate child from the antebellum South and dealing with race relations, I'd think the use of that language appropriate--just as it is in novels by African Americans such as Alice Walker and Toni Morrison that deal with race relations. It does jar in a children's book though, and Tom Sawyer is a children's book, not really a book I think is going to appeal to adults the way Carroll's Alice books can. Some aspects delighted me, even as an adult. Having recently read such books as Uncle Tom's Cabin with the cloying child character of Little Eva and a reread of Little Women, it was a relief to read a child character like Tom that really is a child. Not some miniature adult or walking saint but a young boy who would trade dead animals or kite string for marbles, or trick friends into doing his chores, who hates school and church. The book isn't laden with over-description or formal, stiff language like many novels of the period. It flows beautifully and is filled with charm and humor. On the other hand, at times Tom is appalling in his unthinking cruelty in ways I found disturbing--such as when he allows his family to think he's dead so he can attend his own funeral. And the ending, while it might well delight a child, seems...childish.
    • 5/5
      Everyone should read this book!
    • 4/5
      The standard by which all other boys' adventure stories are judged. More episodic than I'd have liked (so that it sometimes was hard to follow which actions were related to which), but still fun to read. I can now say that I've read (more or less) Tom Sawyer, rather than just scrubbing my toe in the dirt and looking abashed when the topic of literary classics comes up.
    • 3/5
      Snakes and snails and puppy dogs' tails, that's what Tom Sawyer, the essence of little boys everywhere, is made of.This book is fun and light and mischievous. Tom finds himself in trouble throughout the book (usually a side effect of his adventures). His zealous nature and active imagination annoys and endears everyone around him- including the reader.This was my first time reading this book and I only wish I had picked it up when I was younger because I would have taken more delight in it. It's an excellent YA read and a sufficiently entertaining and quick read for an adult. It is a classic for a reason and certainly worth the read no matter your age.
    • 1/5
      for me it was not a good book. But for someone who likes nature and 1800 lifestyle this would be a good book for you.
    • 3/5
      generally a fan of Twain, i didn't really enjoy this one as much as i expected to. i had read selected excerpts of this book as a child in a book of short stories and remembered enjoying them, but as an adult i have a vantage that makes the hyjinx of this child less than amusing.i attribute it somewhat to the cultural divide between myself and the post-civil war south. the behavior seen as customary or appropriate for a pre-adolescent boy at that time and place seems appallingly bad to my mind. what's more, the tolerant attitude displayed toward Tom by his aunt serves to reinforce the behavior she rails against. self-assured and cocky, i fail to sympathize with this child on almost any level. the callous way he regards (or fails to regard) the feelings of others is not charming in the least. and when i cannot identify with my hero, i'm left fairly cold.i also felt certain elements of the plot were not only fantastic, but repetitive. a child can only disappear so many times and muster the panic of the town, yet it seems Tom can go missing again and again and warrant the despair of all around him every time anew. as far as it goes, i enjoyed the casual language and the cadence of the story shows the deftness of Twain in his element, but i simply failed to find anything endearing about his portrayal of a child he meant to paint as a scamp but whom i can only see as a wretched brat.
    • 4/5
      I so enjoyed reading this book….I think I may have read it years ago, but had forgotten. A fun read, cleverly written. This is one of those books everyone should read at least once in their life. It so well captures the adventures of childhood, but also deals with coming of age and issues of character.
    • 5/5
      This is a classic in American literature. What more can be said.
    • 5/5
      Summary: A young boy named Tom Sawyer grows up in a small town. He befriends a slave and goes through many adventures with him. Response: A very fun adventurous book to read. The fact that the characters were based off real people makes it even better. Connection: Have this as a read aloud chapter book discussing the plot with the kids as the teacher reads.
    • 5/5
      It had been some time since I'd read this, and I'm fixing to read a new novel about Huck Finn's Pap, so I thought it best to repair to the source material first. Being the mother of a boy has certainly changed my reaction to this particular book. What struck me as hilarious fiction once now rings true and is not so mirth-inducing. The nature of the boy as boy seems unchanged though lo, these many years have passed. Twain's not dated in the least, and is still one of the funniest writers ever.