"This handbook -- an etiquette guide for the human race -- contains sixty-nine aphorisms, anecdotes, whimsical suggestions, maxims, and cautionary tales from Mark Twain's private and published writings. It dispenses advice and reflections on family life and public manners; opinions on topics such as dress, health, food, childbearing, and safety; and more specialized tips, such as those for dealing with annoying salesmen and burglars. Culled from Twain's personal letters, autobiographical writings, speeches, novels, and sketches, these pieces are fresh, witty, startlingly relevant with Twain's characteristic ebullience. They also remind us exactly how Mark Twain came to be the most distinctive and well-known American literary voice in the world."--BOOK JACKET. Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved