Briden, Earl F. "Twainian Pedagogy and the No-Account Lessons of 'Hadleyburg,"' in Studies in Short Fiction, Vol. 28, No. 2, 1991, pp. 125-34.

Argues against "fortunate fall" interpretations of "Hadleyburg," delineating obstacles presented in the narrative for such readings.

Briden, Earl F. and Mary Prescott. "The Lie that I Am I: Paradoxes of Identity in Mark Twain's 'Hadleyburg."' in Studies in Short Fiction, Vol. 21, No. 4, 1984, pp. 383-91.

Discusses the contradictory pressures of individualism and social conformity, identifying the consequences for characters who "slavishly" seek social approval.

Emerson, Everett. The Authentic Mark Twain: A Literary Biography of Samuel L. Clemens, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1984.

Comprehensive biography of Clemens and the development of his persona "Mark Twain," detailing his literary career.

Quirk, Tom. Mark Twain: A Study of the Short Fiction, New York: Twayne, 1997.

Concise three-part analysis of Twain's major short stories in their historical context, comprising Twain's...