Traveling with the Innocents Abroad • Mark Twain

Traditionally for Lesestunden, today brings the review of the new mare classic, which this time stays very true to the series. The beautiful book is a travelogue by the well-known author Mark Twain about his pleasure trip to the Holy Land. It’s just the perfect read these days to take into the garden on a sunny day and mentally set off on vacation. Whether this cruise is worth taking, you’ll find out in the following lines.

In the summer of 1867, Mark Twain embarked on the decommissioned warship Quaker City for a cruise that took him, along with several other travelers, from New York and the Azores to the coastal cities of the Mediterranean and the Holy Land—Damascus, Palestine, Nazareth, and so on. There were also detours to Paris and a train journey through Italy (including Milan, Venice, and Naples). A proper grand tour, in other words. Originally, he reported on his experiences in over 50 travel letters published in the newspaper Daily Alta California. These reports were later compiled into a book and published under the title The Innocents Abroad, or The New Pilgrims’ Progress.

Travelogues are always a mixed bag for me. I really like them, but I tend to read them in small portions since there’s often no plot to carry me through the story. However, this book was different. Twain writes so vividly and effortlessly; his prose is full of imagery and humor, making it pure pleasure to read his impressions. Of course, he sprinkles in beautiful landscape descriptions, but he also offers plenty of anecdotes and personal reflections. He doesn’t hold back and you can already hear the Twain who would later create characters like Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. His perspective on the world is unfiltered, and he speaks his mind—which often makes you smile. He writes exactly as someone would recount their experiences to friends back home: the highlights, how clean or dirty the places are, the people he meets, local stories and quirks, retellings of biblical passages, descriptions of landmarks and landscapes—in short, everything that strikes a traveler’s attention, delights or disappoints him. And always with irreverence and complete political incorrectness. Yet he’s never entirely dismissive; he can appreciate the beauty of many places just as much as he describes with relish what he dislikes.

At times, Twain’s tone is quite rough and blunt. He doesn’t shy away from judging women and writes about nearly every region, commenting on whether the women there are attractive or not. He can be scathing, for example:

“If I had a wife as ugly as some of those I have seen, I would take a scrub brush to her face in the hope of improving it.” (p. 62)

But he is also capable of capturing the beauty of places in words, as when he looks out over Naples by night from Mount Vesuvius.

“From a high point on the mountain slope we had a splendid view of Naples. Of course, we saw nothing but the gas lamps that formed two-thirds of a circle around the great bay—a necklace of diamonds, gleaming through the darkness from afar—less brilliant than the stars above, yet softer and lovelier; and everywhere across the vast city countless lines and curves of twinkling lights crossed one another. Beyond the city, scattered in wide arcs across the miles of flat Campania, were rows and rings and clusters of lights, all glowing like jewels, marking where nearly a hundred villages slept.” (pp. 145ff)

These two quotes nicely illustrate what awaits the reader in this book: an entertaining mix. Twain has an opinion on nearly everything and collects countless fascinating stories—like The Story of the Seven Sleepers in Ephesus, or his scathing judgment of a genuine Turkish bath. I also loved the episode where he and a few fellow travelers secretly broke quarantine to visit the Acropolis at night. The cruise passengers even paid a visit to the Tsar, which I initially thought must be an exaggeration—but apparently, they really did meet him. It’s amusing that the Russians were so friendly toward Americans back then—something one can’t exactly say 150 years later. Twain’s journey through the Holy Land, to practically every biblically significant site, is highly entertaining, and he doesn’t hesitate to debunk many of the so-called sacred landmarks as rather inauthentic. The highlight of the journey is Jerusalem and the surrounding region, which he describes in great detail.

Twain is, by modern standards, politically incorrect, and readers must consider the book in the context of its time. Kipling has often been accused of racism, though I’ve never found that in his works—but Twain is a different case. He observes the lands and peoples with a somewhat arrogant gaze, that of a self-assured and “progressive” American. He holds nothing but contempt for the Turks—“a bunch of scoundrels,” in his view—and describes Arabs as thieves and bandits. He judges women solely by their attractiveness and compares the poor rural population of Syria to Native Americans, describing the poverty of other nations with a touch of irony. One could say he’s rather tactless. I found it quite entertaining, but one shouldn’t be overly sensitive and must understand it in context. It’s precisely this raw directness that makes his style so captivating.

He also frequently writes about his fellow travelers, often unflatteringly, portraying them with stereotypical traits that can probably be found in any travel group. At the end, he summarizes the journey and again reflects on the group dynamics. The afterword also elaborates on how the other travelers perceived the famous author. I found that particularly interesting—Twain seems to have been a witty and mischievous companion who kept spirits high aboard the ship and certainly didn’t shy away from worldly pleasures.

Twain also includes plenty of humorous remarks. Early on, for instance, he grows weary of churches and their endless relics. Apparently, every second church claimed to possess the real Crown of Thorns. It’s also amusing how locals constantly overvalue their relics and curiosities. Twain remains unimpressed and states his opinions frankly. He also describes how his fellow travelers eagerly collect souvenirs—sometimes even chiseling stones from ancient ruins. Despite his sarcasm, Twain demonstrates surprising biblical knowledge. Though he often retells biblical passages in a mocking tone, I had the impression that he was genuinely Christian, only critical of what believers had made of these sacred sites and relics. There are numerous, often paraphrased Bible quotations showing that despite the humor and irony of his letters, he took the pilgrimage seriously. Overall, the book reads smoothly and, despite its considerable length, feels light and entertaining—you finish it far too quickly.

I also loved the many illustrations by Truman W. Williams, taken from the 1897 edition. Many of Jules Verne’s adventure novels also feature similar illustrations, and I adore this old-fashioned style. They beautifully complement the text and are simply a joy to look at.

The translation by Alexander Pechmann is once again excellent—nothing to criticize there—and both his foreword and afterword are highly informative. I especially liked the foreword, as it provides valuable context and helps set the scene. Several annotations give background to the text, something I always appreciate in these high-quality mare editions. The letters were later published in book form as The Innocents Abroad (in German: Die Arglosen im Ausland), but that version was commercially motivated, softened, and edited. The edition Traveling with the Innocents Abroad is based on Twain’s original newspaper letters, retaining his irony, sarcasm, and often biting tone. The afterword explains these details and even shares the reactions of his fellow travelers to his writings, which I found fascinating.

The travel letters, compiled into the 1869 book, became Mark Twain’s most successful publication of its time. Only later did his famous novels, such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, appear. His narrative style feels refreshingly natural—unpretentious, as if told by an ordinary traveler. This creates a pleasant sense of intimacy and authenticity. At times, however, Twain’s tone feels arrogant, judging from a Christian-centric worldview. Or he praises Tsar Alexander in exaggerated terms, clearly impressed by his power. Occasionally, there’s that typical superficiality often attributed to Americans even today. But this doesn’t diminish the reading pleasure in the least.

As for the book’s presentation, mare Verlag once again shows courage and taste, offering a printed cloth binding featuring the Quaker City. I already loved this with Typee, and it looks wonderful here as well. The embossed title and author name feel lovely to the touch. The endpapers feature an old map marking the route and stops of the voyage, while the closing endpaper shows a detailed map of the Holy Land. I found both extremely useful, often consulting them to follow Twain’s route. It’s especially charming that these are maps from the period, showing the old kingdoms and empires. The typography is also beautiful and finely tuned—the chapter titles in particular have a strikingly elegant typeface. The paper has that silky smooth feel I’ve come to associate with mare classics, and, of course, the thread binding is there too. In terms of quality and craftsmanship, the mare classics remain unmatched; even after years, they still look like new.

Conclusion: Twain’s travel letters make for a wonderfully entertaining read, full of anecdotes, landscapes, stories, and cultural observations, all told with wit and charm. The reader embarks on a journey that feels like a vacation in itself. Twain speaks candidly, recounting everything from a personal and refreshingly spirited perspective. The beautiful design, elegant typography, and charmingly old-fashioned illustrations elevate the book even further. All in all, another excellent addition to the mare classics series—one that embodies everything readers love about these exquisite editions.

Book Information: Traveling with the Innocents Abroad • Mark Twain • mare Verlag • 528 pages • ISBN 9783866486553