Mark Twain's First National Magazine Appearance

[ Twain, Mark ] [ Clemens, Samuel ]

Forty-three Days In An Open Boat [In: Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. 34, No. 199, December, 1866]

New York: Harper & Brothers 1866. First Edition. [1]-136, [4], [4 ads] pages plus wrappers. 6 1/2 x 10 1/4 inches. Untrimmed and partially uncut. Creasing and minor soiling to the wrappers. Spine intact but with tearing towards the base. Good. Original wraps. [22996]


Merle Johnson notes Mark Twain's first book was printed in 1867. The story offered here, Forty Three Days in an Open Boat, predates that first book publication, appearing on pages 104-113 of the December 1866 issue of this periodical. The story was published in the Sacramento Union in 1866. This version (with additions) was published in the national periodical Harper's New Monthly Magazine, making it Twain's first national magazine publication. Unlike some books serialized over months in periodicals, this story is complete in this single issue. It was not attributed to a particular author, but the annual magazine index notes the author as Mark Swain (a typographical error). Bound volumes are fairly available, but copies in the original wrappers are more difficult to obtain given the ephemeral nature of the binding.

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