A recipient of the George Washington Prize, Kevin J. Hayes lives and writes in Toledo, Ohio. He has published widely on American literature, history and culture, including Herman Melville, Edgar Allan Poe and Mark Twain in Reaktion’s Critical Lives series.
"""Hayes's brisk and sophisticated prose makes every sentence count in explaining the impactful events of Clemens's life and the significance of his writings. . . . Here and there in his rapid-fire narrative Hayes pauses to savor a neglected nugget of Mark Twain's drollery. . . . One wishes that this fine little volume had been available long before 2018.""-- ""Mark Twain Journal"""