Mark Twain, travel books, and tourism

"In this work, Jeffrey Melton asserts that it was no coincidence that Mark Twain made such extensive use of the travel-writing genre or that so many readers loved these narratives. Twain recognized the lucrative sales potential of travel books and capitalized on it throughout a varied and formidable career; consistently, his travel books proved to be his best-sellers. As Melton illustrates, to ensure his success, Twain had to be more than a clever author; he also had to be a clever tourist.

Grounding this study in tourist theory, Melton explores how, in five travel books, Twain captures the birth and growth of a new creature who would go on to change the map of the world: the American tourist."--BOOK JACKET.