Book Review: The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain

The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So, what happens when a humorous writer from the West Coast joins a bunch of East Coasters tourists on a tour of the France, Italy, Greece, the Holy Land, and Egypt in 1867? The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain is a humorous travelogue detailing the author’s five month “pleasure excursion” on both land and sea.

Noting his observations and critiques of not only his adventures, but his fellow passengers, those locals that he’s met, and his expectations, Twain took everything to task so likely to the frustration of his fellow passengers. Twain’s humor isn’t over-the-top instead it is subtle and slowly builds thematic jokes until hitting the perfect one to finish the thread on then letting it go—unlike some comedians that can’t think of new material. This narrative nonfiction account has it all with minute detail of how the trip begins, excitement on finally getting to a foreign location, annoyance with everyone tell you the same nonsensical factoid all the time, watching our fellow travelers taking souvenirs by breaking pieces off stuff, realizing all the money you spent of travelogues to let you know what to expect would have been better in your pocket, and not caring one bit what happened on the way home because you just want to get there. As my previous Twain reads were short stories in high school or the serious historical fiction Joan of Arc, I didn’t know what to expect going in and I came out very happy after reading it.

The Innocents Abroad is a humorous look at a journey from the United States to Europe and the Holy Land from the viewpoint of Mark Twain. Upon finishing it you’ll realize why it was Twain’s bestselling book during his lifetime.

View all my reviews