Finn, Again, The Later Adventure of Huckleberry Finn
Doug Hundley makes his debut on the site today. He’s making all 9 episodes of Finn, Again, The Later Adventure of Huckleberry Finn. You might have caught the subtext:
Still a rascal and a wanderer, Huck Finn, now nearing thirty, narrowly escapes a shotgun wedding, outwits a crafty Treasury Agent bent on connecting him with the killing of President Lincoln, meets up with Tom Sawyer and his old river pal Jim, executes a clever con in saloons across Nebraska, and explores the American Frontier with a traveling band of Shakespearean actors.
Along the way our free-spirited hero falls head-over-heels for an English heiress, gets involved in a series of brawls, survives a gun battle, has a run-in with a poisonous snake, builds a raft, almost drowns, survives a San Francisco earthquake, and is forced to disguise himself as a woman.
All this in an effort to catch a boat to Australia to prospect for opals “as big as your thumb.”
As the book is complete, those who subscribe to the default feed will have all nine episodes in the feed right away. Those who choose a custom feed will get episodes delivered to their feed on a schedule they get to choose. Perfect for those who have plenty of other things they are listening to any given day. The choice is yours!
November 25th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
I’m a big Mark Twain fan and was pleasantly surprised this book. Absolutely perfect! Thank you for the great story, Mr Hundley!
November 25th, 2009 at 11:05 pm
is there a print edition available?
November 26th, 2009 at 2:36 am
What a hoot! This is hilarious, particularly if you love Shakespeare, Mark Twain, and theater arts. Delightfully performed, a pleasure listening to this storyteller spin out his yarn – or fill yer jug with moonshine!
November 26th, 2009 at 1:19 pm
No print version yet, Carin. Other than the typed pages in the top drawer of my desk. Gotta wait and see if there’s enough buzz after a few weeks to interest a publisher.
November 30th, 2009 at 11:34 am
the negative: the audio quality is slightly below what I’m used to. However, it’s not a deal breaker at all. Basically sounds like it was recorded in a big room with a high noise floor.
The positive: One of the most enjoyable short novels I’ve heard or read in a really really long time. The writing was great, and the performance by the author was one of the best I’ve heard (and I’ve listened to a LOT of books on podiobooks). Right up there with Greg Crites.
I found myself really caring about the characters in this story. It really felt like Huck was telling the story to me.
Do not pass this up. I couldn’t stop listening to it, and finished it in a day.
December 1st, 2009 at 10:16 pm
Thanks, octopon. In hindsight, I probably should have chosen a cozier spot than a theatre stage to do the recording. That you cared about the characters means so much to me. Wish I could tell you. Every one of them is real to me and means a lot.
December 3rd, 2009 at 8:23 pm
What an utterly charming read! Playful, beautifully read. It strikes all the right notes. Yeah, the sound quality could be better. But even so it does what a good book ought to: it transports you to another place and time.
December 4th, 2009 at 4:06 pm
Thanks, chickenfog, for the kind comments. Happy that you saw fit to describe the story as “playful.” If Huck, whether 14 or 28, is anything, he’s playful. I’m pretty sure he’ll still be playful at 64.
December 6th, 2009 at 6:28 pm
Finn Again is a delightful read, fast paced and with a great sense of humor. I always wondered what became of that Huckleberry boy. This book could have a sequel set in Australia, couldn’t it?
December 7th, 2009 at 11:12 am
A sequel in Australia, Belle? If Finn, Again morphs into a TV series, that’s likely to be Season Three.
December 11th, 2009 at 6:42 pm
A good one Doug, if Sam were still around, I think he’d smile.
December 13th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
This book works so beautifully from the first page, it is as though you had transmogrified into Samuel Clemens, in order to let your readers know what became of that adventurous kid, Huck Finn. You have written the book in such a “visual” manner, that as I “turned the pages,” I was not only reading a book, but easily visualizing it as a “big screen” delight. You have deftly brought Huck back to life, capturing the same style, wit, and social conscience of that “river boat” guy, who first found Huck in his own imagination.
One gets the sense that Huck knows his life will not be dull, so he is able to work, and play, and adjust to the adventures he encounters (both good and bad) without floundering like a live fish on shore. Your plotting is never plodding. Bringing us the “Tiny” British Troupe of actors was brilliant, because in doing so your skillfull writing then opens the door for adventures that are sometimes funny, sometimes sad, but always unpredictable. When Huck “does” Shakespeare, I was in hysterics: that is an immensely funny scene.
Huck’s social conscience is also apparent—never in a heavy-handed way—as he reveals what became of Jim and how he (Huck) had helped the former slave to create a good life for himself. And more importantly, that Huck and Jim plus family, are good friends.
There are always surprises: I finished the final chapter feeling as though I had just completed a delightful meal.
But wait, there was an unexpected element: A marvelous epilogue, a fresh and unexpected dessert!!!!!
And I don’t plan to reveal it here. For members of your listening audience who haven’t yet finished the book, they may look forward to a unique “dessert.”
From an editor’s perspective, I have to express deep disappointment: I usually jump into any novel, whether the good, the bad, or the ugly, and immediately begin looking for the problems: Well, dammit, there aren’t any!!!
Structure, characterization, dialogue, all work beautifully. Perhaps three or four times in a particular phrase structure, I would have taken out a word or rearranged the structure, but I did not feel it was wrong; it was choice, so I didn’t turn white and scribble a note to the author. Truly of no import.
So, Doug, it is a fine and original book, and now it’s time to find yourself a publisher.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read “Finn, Again.”,
December 13th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
Viv – Frankly, your excellently written, highly insightful review leaves me speechless. You GOT it. Thank you so much for REALLY listening. So glad it was an entertaining experience for you.
December 15th, 2009 at 7:10 am
This is a great story and a wonderful nevel fo every HUckleberry Finn fan.
December 19th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Wow, did Samuel Clemens come back to life? Seems so when you listen to this rip roarin’ adventure.
Thanks to Doug Hundley for his ever fertile creative imagination.
January 26th, 2010 at 6:59 pm
Just finished listening to it yesterday and found it to be a thoroughly riveting, on the edge of my seat, hanging on every word experience For some strange reason, i felt like i knew each and every character personally. The narration with the various dialects and accents came off beautifully. i especially enjoyed the Vigora journey through Nebraska since that is the state where i currently reside.
I guess about the only thing missing would have been to (somewhere along the line) give that high-falutin Phinis character a pair of loose-top boots and put him him in some sort of situation where he gets caught in the company of an ol’ stump-broke sheep. That’ve taken him down a notch ‘er two offin his high horse. Maybe keep that in mind for the silver screen version of Finn Again or perhaps the sequel “Finn Again and Again”.
Great job!
December 4th, 2010 at 11:09 pm
Great effort, Doug. I feel like you would have made Twain proud. I thought you captured Huck Finn well, and was pleased in the way you wove in the other familiar characters. Well done!
February 3rd, 2011 at 3:57 pm
Finn Again is a story that is a perfect fit for recording, and Doug is a talented voice actor able to do the accents that created a very believable young southern man, a girl and several Shakespearean actors, male and female and others along the way. Huck’s adventures came to life through Doug’s performance, creating many smiles and even some giggles.
Doug created a believable adult Huckleberry Finn, forever searching for the gold at the end of the rainbow, yet he was an intelligent, caring man, who would go out of his way, even postponing his goal to help others. Doug did not take away the trickster that we all love, however, just gave him new ways to get out of trouble.
We were treated to the vignettes that took us back into the story of our childhood, the adult lives of Tom Sawyer and Becky Thatcher, and even his companion Jim’s family. All were given a life again by this talented writer.
My favorite scene was Huck narrating the plays. Othello was a kick!
The surprise ending was just as it happened in real life, I am sure.
The only problem was the audio, not as good as it could have been. The buzz that was a constant companion, however did not stop me from listening to the story.
Thank you, Doug, for writing and reading your very entertaining story.
February 8th, 2011 at 10:38 pm
Thanks, Arlene, for the positive comments regarding my writing and my performing of Finn, Again. I’m thrilled that you enjoyed it so thoroughly and especially that it prompted smiles and giggles. Love that kind of feedback.
February 28th, 2011 at 8:04 pm
I agree with Belle back in September 2009, “Finn – Down Under”, would be a great sequel. Cobb’s stagecoaches, the Gold Rush, aristocratic sons sent from England to Australia “under a cloud”, paddle wheelers on the Murray River and bushrangers wearing iron buckets as armored helmets would make a great background. Of course there would be more scope for travelling theatricals too and, who knows, as the story nears its end, Huckleberry Finn could become a father whose son, Huck Junior goes on to start his own adventures with an aborigine friend! I hope you do write more of “Finn” as you really capture the essence of this well-loved character.
March 28th, 2011 at 6:24 am
Thank you so much Mr Hundley having heard your book countless times, I find fantastic how you are able to slip into the style and the voices of each of the people Huck meets along the way, I also must say how you are able it fit the history of the USA around Huck was good way to go, As I child I had/have a tape of Jack Lennon reading the Huck Finn and now having heard you I would say that you give him a run for is money