American authors similar to Mark Twain/Poe?

[SirJazzHands]

I have to read a novel for school, and I've decided this month I'll make it something American. I love Twain, but don't want to read something else written by him.
I'd like something from the 1800s that's American, classic lit, etc etc, that will hold my interest. I'm normally more interested in characters than plot.
Any ideas?

[PeterL]

Bret Harte and Ambrose Bierce would fit. What characteristics of Twain's or Poe's writing interest you?

[SirJazzHands]

I don't really know. Most likely the southern influence because I come from the South and I'm not a "southern redneck" or whatever at all, but I do love reading about it all, oddly.
Poe.. I included him mostly because I guess what I'm looking for is the style of writing, I don't really know how to explain it because I haven't read much of it.. but just that classic literature kind of tone that's considered "dry". Not that Poe or Twain are dry. Ah I'll shut up now, I'm making no sense. :)

[PeterL]

One thing that characterizes the writing of both is a tongue that is firmly in cheek. Both of them went for hoaxes or big lies. Recent writers wih similar tendencies would include Vonnegut and G. C. Edmondson, and there are others.

[SirJazzHands]

Yeah that's the quality in Twain I appreciate most, the satirical nature.. I remember when I read Tom Sawyer last summer, he seemed to describe things extravagantly when Tom was depressed or happy, and I just thought it was an amusing way of writing. Not to mention some of the passages in that book are actually gorgeous.. So far the only Twain I've read is Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, and Pudd'nhead Wilson. Since Pudd'nhead Wilson was taught in a class and the teacher went over the material pretty thoroughly, that one may be my favorite. Not to mention, I believe Twain was a genius because he saw the use of fingerprints a bit before their time.

[PeterL]

Yeah that's the quality in Twain I appreciate most, the satirical nature.. I remember when I read Tom Sawyer last summer, he seemed to describe things extravagantly when Tom was depressed or happy, and I just thought it was an amusing way of writing. Not to mention some of the passages in that book are actually gorgeous.. So far the only Twain I've read is Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, and Pudd'nhead Wilson. Since Pudd'nhead Wilson was taught in a class and the teacher went over the material pretty thoroughly, that one may be my favorite. Not to mention, I believe Twain was a genius because he saw the use of fingerprints a bit before their time.

Then you might want to read the rest of Twain's works. Be aware that not all o it is as good as those, and some things that he wrote weren't very good. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court was one of his best, but it is seldom assigned in schools, because of some of the comments. I don't know what's available on this site, but all of Twain's writings are in the public domain now and most can be downloaded from here or from www.gutenberg.org

[Dark Muse]

If you are more interesting in characters than plot, I would recomand Henry James. His novels are very much about the character. Also, I enjoyed Hawthrone's Blithedale Romance.

[Devil Child]

Why don't you read Poe? Any of his works always serve to amuse and entertain me, aside from the fact that his mysteries are sensational and his poetry inspiring.

[Cellomaster2238]

If you are looking for great American literature from the 1800s, you can't go wrong with Moby-Dick. I would deffinitely not describe it as funny or tongue-in-cheek, though.

[SirJazzHands]

I've been interested in reading it before, but I've heard the whaling descriptions are a bit grueling and tedious..

[Dark Muse]

Yes, though I have not read Moby Dick, I have read Melville before, and in general his writing is very tideous with lots of detail, and usually he waits till near the end of the story, to acutally get into the story. But his works are also character driven. Not too much plot really in his writing but more about the inner workings of the minds of the characters

[Pecksie]

If "American" means "from the American continent", i.e. Canada to Tierra del Fuego, I'd suggest the Uruguayan writer Horacio Quiroga. He wrote wonderful short stories, some of them really creepy, and has been compared to Poe. I think there's a collection translated into English.