Considered to be way ahead of his time on issues of race and politics, Twain remains one of literature's greatest original stars. Best known perhaps for his legendary Huckleberry Finn and Adventures of Tom Sawyer - his writing actually reached beyond the simple, but perfectly crafted adventure story to tackle serious cultural issues like slavery that most either avoided or ignored. But although it had serious intentions, his writing was always infused with a great sense of humour - and here that is evident in abundance in these 24 never-published-before essays about all elements of life and culture. In the piece 'Jane Austen', for instance Twain wonders if Austen's goal is to 'make the reader detest her people up to the middle of the book and like them in the rest of the chapters' whilst the "Happy Memories of the Dental Chair" will make you seriously appreciate modern dentistry.