Lighting Out for the Territory

Now in paperback, the rollicking story of Samuel Clemens's six-year sojourn in the Wild West, where he literally reinvented himself as America's most famous and beloved author. It is the first book to fully examine the entirety of Twain's western experience, from his brief, abortive service in the Civil War as a Confederate guerrilla in Missouri to his ensuing half-decade in Nevada, California, and Hawaii as a silver miner, fledgling journalist, developing writer and stage performer. Since it is impossible to out-do Mark Twain, whenever possible the book allows Twain to speak for himself, while taking care to put his words and deeds into the context of their historical time and place.