Mark Twain, who lived from 1835 to 1910, is one of America´s most famous authors. He wrote many books, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain´s own life was interesting enough to be a book.
Twain was born in the state of Missouri, near the Mississippi River. He came from a poor family. His father died when he was twelve, so he had to leave school. While he was still a boy, he worked as a riverboat pilot. He steered boats up and down the long Mississippi River.
The Civil War, which started in 1861, made traveling on the Mississippi impossible. Twain then went west to Nevada. There he worked on a newspaper. In 1864 he went to California to find gold. Twain did not have much luck as a gold miner. He left California to travel in Europe. Twain wrote a book about his trips around Europe.
But the most important influence on Twain and his books was the Mississippi River. When Twain finally settled down, he lived in a house with a porch that looked like the deck of a riverboat. Huckleberry Finn, Twain's greatest book, is about the adventures of a boy on the Mississippi River. Another of Twain's books is called Life on the Mississippi.
In fact, even the name Mark Twain comes from the Mississippi. Mark Twain's real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. On the river Samuel Clemens often heard the boatmen shout Mark twain! This meant the water was twelve feet deep. When Samuel Clemens began to write he chose for himself the name Mark Twain.
Source: All about the USA, a cultural reader
QUESTIONS
VOCABULARY
Complete the definitions. Choose the correct answer:
1.- People who write books are called...:
a. states b. trips c. authors
2.- The covered entrance area attached to a house is the...:
a. boat b. porch c. luck
3.- Someone who looks for coal or gold in the ground is a ...:
a. miner b. boatman c. pilot
4.- The floor of a sip is called the...:
a. house b. deck c. river
5.- The action of driving a ship or car is...:
a. steering b. traveling c. shouting
6.- A person who gives directions to help steer a boat is a ...:
a. pilot b. boy c. Samuel Clemens
7.- When you stop moving from place to place, you ...:
a. leave b. come from c. settle down
8.- Another word for trip is ...:
a. Influence b. riverboat c. journey
COMPREHENSION
Choose the best answer:
1.- Mark Twain is ...:
a. the name os a riverboat.
b. one of America's most famous authors.
c. the real name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens.
2.- Mark Twain ...:
a. left school to be a writer.
b. was born in Nevada.
c. worked at many different.
3.- The greatest influence on Mark Twain and his books was ...:
a. his poor family.
b. his porch.
c. the Mississippi River.
Number the sentences 1 through 10 to show the correct order.
____ He left school when his father died.
____ Then he went west to Nevada.
____ In 1864 he went to California to find gold.
____ He wrote Huckleberry Finn.
____ Mark Twain was born in Missouri in 1835.
____ He left California to travel in Europe.
____ There he worked on a newspaper.
____ He worked as a riverboat pilot.
____ Mark Twain died in 1910.
____ He wrote a book about his trips around Europe.
Twain was born in the state of Missouri, near the Mississippi River. He came from a poor family. His father died when he was twelve, so he had to leave school. While he was still a boy, he worked as a riverboat pilot. He steered boats up and down the long Mississippi River.
The Civil War, which started in 1861, made traveling on the Mississippi impossible. Twain then went west to Nevada. There he worked on a newspaper. In 1864 he went to California to find gold. Twain did not have much luck as a gold miner. He left California to travel in Europe. Twain wrote a book about his trips around Europe.
But the most important influence on Twain and his books was the Mississippi River. When Twain finally settled down, he lived in a house with a porch that looked like the deck of a riverboat. Huckleberry Finn, Twain's greatest book, is about the adventures of a boy on the Mississippi River. Another of Twain's books is called Life on the Mississippi.
In fact, even the name Mark Twain comes from the Mississippi. Mark Twain's real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. On the river Samuel Clemens often heard the boatmen shout Mark twain! This meant the water was twelve feet deep. When Samuel Clemens began to write he chose for himself the name Mark Twain.
Source: All about the USA, a cultural reader
QUESTIONS
VOCABULARY
Complete the definitions. Choose the correct answer:
1.- People who write books are called...:
a. states b. trips c. authors
2.- The covered entrance area attached to a house is the...:
a. boat b. porch c. luck
3.- Someone who looks for coal or gold in the ground is a ...:
a. miner b. boatman c. pilot
4.- The floor of a sip is called the...:
a. house b. deck c. river
5.- The action of driving a ship or car is...:
a. steering b. traveling c. shouting
6.- A person who gives directions to help steer a boat is a ...:
a. pilot b. boy c. Samuel Clemens
7.- When you stop moving from place to place, you ...:
a. leave b. come from c. settle down
8.- Another word for trip is ...:
a. Influence b. riverboat c. journey
COMPREHENSION
Choose the best answer:
1.- Mark Twain is ...:
a. the name os a riverboat.
b. one of America's most famous authors.
c. the real name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens.
2.- Mark Twain ...:
a. left school to be a writer.
b. was born in Nevada.
c. worked at many different.
3.- The greatest influence on Mark Twain and his books was ...:
a. his poor family.
b. his porch.
c. the Mississippi River.
Number the sentences 1 through 10 to show the correct order.
____ He left school when his father died.
____ Then he went west to Nevada.
____ In 1864 he went to California to find gold.
____ He wrote Huckleberry Finn.
____ Mark Twain was born in Missouri in 1835.
____ He left California to travel in Europe.
____ There he worked on a newspaper.
____ He worked as a riverboat pilot.
____ Mark Twain died in 1910.
____ He wrote a book about his trips around Europe.
