The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer - Mark Twain

I finished this book quite some time ago, but had planned to do a bookreport and I'd feel forever guilty if I didn't write it, so here it is.

Title: The adventures of Tom Sawyer
Author Mark Twain
Genre Children's adventure
Publisher: Salamander Klassiek (Classics collection)
Read in Dutch, translation by Peter Bergsma
Rating: 6/10

Synopsis, stolen from wikipedia. I suspect everybody has heard of Tom Sawyer, even though I'm a Huckleberry Finn-fan myself and always thought Tom was just the side-kick. (more on that in my lj;)
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain, is a popular 1876 novel about a young boy growing up in the Antebellum South on the Mississippi River in the fictional town of St. Petersburg, Missouri.

Usually I would read the English original, but by accident I bought this edition for my Classics Collection (all those books in a row look so pretty on my shelf). I understand Mark Twain is a much revered writer, but if I had to base my opinion about his qualities on this book, I wouldn't qualify him as such. I didn't like his style at all. Maybe it was the translation, but I don't think so.

The story of Tom Sawyer had much potential, after all not every boy has to deal with witnessing a murder next to the daily business of trying to impress the girl he fancies and playing pirates with his friends. But I found the way the author butts in and states his opinion about the character all through the story very annoying. I like to decide for myself whether Tom's behavior is acceptable and whether or not I like the boy.
I was especially peeved when Mark Twain decided a certain development spoke for itself, and 'he didn't need to tell how that particular scene would end.' That's just lazy writing.
What also got on my nerves was the pace of the story. Certain minor events get a lot of attention and drag on and on, while true adventures are rushed and forgotten quickly. The emphasis lays on naughty behavior and not really on character development.

It's not all bad; I really liked the glimpses in Tom's mind: his doubts about girls, friends, adult behavior and whether telling the truth is the best option, are very recognizable. I'm always surprised to learn boys think about these things as well. I liked his ability to take life as it comes and enjoyed his sollutions to problems big and small. I had to get used to how he treats his friends and the old fashion notion of different classes, but all in all it is an adventurous story and it certainly taught me a thing or two about how people lived in that time in that area.

Mark Twain stated he intended this book to entertain children, while at the same time amuse adults with a reminder of how life used to be. But I feel patronized by the way he didn't let the story stand on its own. He annoyed me very much by breaking in on Tom's point of view and forcing me to accept his opinion about the character. I suspect what he really wanted was to educate the kids, but he tried to sell it as an adventure and that's where he looses points with me.