Give this book as a gift to anyone interested in American literature or American-European cultural exchange in the latter half of the nineteenth century, and treat yourself to a copy, too. It's an innovative biography, bringing characters to life in novelistic scenes, yet maintaining its scholarly authority. Nissen has deliberately chosen a style that a wide audience can enjoy. But he has also done his homework. Manuscripts related to Bret Harte are scattered throughout U.S. and European libraries, and Nissen has performed the laborious task of piecing them together--including many sources previously unknown to Harte scholarship. Through the new research, BRET HARTE: PRINCE AND PAUPER offers, for instance, the most probing anaysis yet of Harte's close relationships with other men. In sum, the book is an illuminating, authoritative, moving portrait of a writer who once enjoyed the acclaim of both popular audiences and the literary establishment. See the author's comments linked to this site. Then read the book.

Bret Harte: Prince & Pauper is the first scholarly biography of the author to appear in nearly seventy years, and provides a new assessment of the life and achievements of the writer. New sources provide additional insights into Harte's life and times, bringing to life new truths about his finances and separation from family. An intriguing, moving study.

Harte's capacity to capture the sense of humanity beneath often typecast characters, deliver an emotional punch ending, and capture the reader's mind's eye with fluid imagery is astounding. Every piece in here is gold...now RUSH and order this book. (pa-da-ching)

I had never even heard of Bret Harte before I read this story, and I really enjoyed it. I loved the way that he used language and imagery to vividly portray the people of Poker Flat. The way that John Oakhurst's (the gambler) thoughts are described, as everything relating to a game of cards, was interesting. It really made me feel like I could see all these people- they seem like very real, everyday characters that could be encountered in anyone's life. Harte obviously knows people, and knows how to tell a good story. I would love to read other stories that he's written.

tnIn my opinion Uncle billy truly steals the scene. It was true inspiration to me. I couldnt wait tot see how it ended . I recommend it to anyone

I thought this book was very good and very interesting.

John Oakhurst, on death row is outside in a nerby camp.Then one day, aparently killed himself.

This book was great! It was full of delightful stories, and Harte's "Outcasts of Poker Flat" was the best. All the different Characters and the suprising irony made it a winner.

If your driving through the country and have a great imagination, "The Wild West" will take you on a memorable journey. Share the dilemma of a down and out gambler stuck in a snowstorm. Live through the terror of Anthrax hitting a herd of cows. Enjoy the timeless "The Celebrated Frog of Calaveras County". These tapes are filled with rich stories that easily cath up the reader. Be warned-if you rather hear stories of shootouts and fist fights, look elsewhere. The cover is deceiving- it lists "Performed by Jack Palance" underneath the title. Not all the stories are told by Palance, but the other narrators are just as good, if not as famous. These stories appeal to any lover of literature because of the richness of the charaters and the fluidity of the plots.