mark twain’s

“provides a gateway to otherwise daunting works of literature...

the stories will attract reluctant readers.” - school library journal

A GRAPHIC NOVEL

BY hall & strickland

THE ADVENTURES OF

TOM SAWYER

Often accompanied by his best friend, Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer explores a graveyard at

nighttime, gets lost in a bat cave, and tricks some of his friends into whitewashing a fence for him.

But it’s not all fun and games for Tom and Huck. After witnessing a murder, the two friends find

themselves in a series of crazy adventures that place them in some frightening situations.

THE ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYERtw

ain • hall • strickland

I S BN 978-1-4965-0003-8

9 7 8 1 4 9 6 5 0 0 0 3 8

9 0 0 0 0

Reinforced Library Binding 010-014 GRL: U

a capstone imprint www.capstonepub.com

TABLE OF CONTENTSABOUT MARK TWAIN ..................................................................................................................................................................... 5 cast of characters .................................................................................................................................................................6

CHAPTER 1 TOM IN TROUBLE ......................................................................................................................................................................8

CHAPTER 2 MURDER IN THE GRAVEYARD ..............................................................................................................................18

CHAPTER 3 A PIRATE’S LIFE .......................................................................................................................................................................30

CHAPTER 4 MORE TROUBLE FOR TOM .......................................................................................................................................40

CHAPTER 5 TREASURE! .......................................................................................................................................................................................44

CHAPTER 6 LOST — AND FOUND ........................................................................................................................................................ 52

About the retelling AUTHOR AND ILLUSTRATOR .................................................................................66 GLOSSARY ................................................................................................................................................................................................67 COMMON CORE ALIGNED READING AND WRITING QUESTIONS .....................................................68

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ABOUT MARK TWAINMark Twain was born in Hannibal, Missouri in 1835. An adventurous young man,

Twain traveled around the United States. He worked as a Mississippi riverboat pilot, a

miner, and a reporter. When Twain wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in 1872, most

other books presented boys as purely good or evil characters. Twain wanted his boy

hero, Tom Sawyer, to act like a real boy, so he based the book on his own boyhood

adventures in Missouri.

Set sometime between 1830 and 1840, the story shows small-town life along the

Mississippi River. At the time of the story, steamboats changed the way people and

goods traveled. Before the invention of steamboats, it often took months to travel

between the major river ports of New Orleans and Minneapolis. However, steamboats

could make this journey in just ten days.

Throughout The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Twain presented the kinds of people

he knew from his hometown. Some of these people were important figures in the

town, like Judge Thatcher. Others, like Muff Potter, were poor drifters who were

drawn to schemes for getting rich. The one character who seems different from the

rest is Injun Joe. The word “Injun” is a slang word for “Indian” or “Native American.”

Mark Twain didn’t know much about Native Americans, so he based Injun Joe on

stereotypes, or unfair beliefs, that many Americans held during that time.

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Tom SawyerThe hero of the story

Aunt PollyTom’s aunt and guardian

Ben RogersTom’s friend

Becky ThatcherThe prettiest girl in town

Huckleberry FinnA boy with no parents and no home

Injun JoeA thief and murderer

Muff PotterA drifterSid Tom’s younger half-brother

MaryTom’s older cousin

cast of characters

Tom Sawyer

Aunt Polly

Huckelberry FinnJoe Harper

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Injun Joe

Muff Potter

Becky Thatcher

Doc

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I should’ve known you were in that closet!

I’ve told you forty times, leave that jam alone! I’ll

skin you!

Look behind you, Aunt Polly!

Skipping school and stealing jam!

He’s played enough tricks on me!

If I get ahold of you . . .

Tom? Tom Sawyer!

Just then, a noise came from the closet.

CHAPTER 1

TOM IN TROUBLE

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Why, ain’t painting work?

Maybe it is, and maybe it ain’t. All I know is, it’s fun. A boy doesn’t get a chance

to whitewash often!

You got to work, huh?

What do you call work?

Tom’s punishment was to spend Saturday painting the fence. When Ben Rogers came along, Tom got an idea.

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Say, Tom, that looks fun. Let me whitewash

a little. Please?

Sorry. Aunt Polly’s mighty

fussy.

I’ll be careful, and I’ll give you

my apple!

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The best way to make someone want

something is to make it hard to get!

Tom found other victims after Ben. Each traded a prize for a chance to paint.

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Already? How much have you

done?

Tom, I can’t bear it when

you lie!

May I play now?

It’s all done.

Well, I never! You sure can work

when you want to!

Later, inside Aunt Polly’s house . . .

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She’s the prettiest girl I’ve

ever seen!

After a friendly game of war with his pals, Tom headed home. Outside the Thatcher house, he spotted someone he had never noticed before.

Tom put the flower inside his shirt, near his heart — or maybe his stomach. Tom wasn’t exactly sure where his heart was.

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