Diaries of Adam & Eve

These diaries are a delightful look into the thinking of the first two humans as they observed each other in the Garden of Eden. The author uses the garden as context to write lighthearted notes on behavior the diarists find confusing in the other person.

Eve begins her diary with the introspective comment that, "I feel exactly like an experiment, and nothing more". She continues with observations of Adam. She follows him around the garden only to realize he is trying to avoid her by hiding himself in the branches of a tree.

After several days without seeing him, she confesses that "It is a long time to be alone. Still, it is better to be alone than unwelcome. I had to have company - I was made for it - so I made friends with the animals. They are charming, and they have the kindest disposition and the politest ways. They smile at you and wag their tail. I think they are perfect gentlemen".

Adam spends his time avoiding the chatty Eve and going over Niagara Falls in wooden buckets. He records a tender observation near the end of his diary. "I see that I was mistaken about Eve in the beginning. At first, I thought she talked too much, but now I should be sorry to have that voice fall silent and pass out of my life. Blessed is the chestnut that brought us near together and taught me to know the goodness of her heart and the sweetness of her spirit!".

A short summary of the story may tell too much, so you only need to know that Mark Twain was lucky enough to stumble upon the personal diaries of Adam and Eve while on a hike through the woods.

Twain was in upstate New York when he happened to run across the important diaries, which he translated into English for us to read and enjoy, which I hope you do. The grueling work of translation from the language of God to that of the Americans took place between the years 1893 and 1906.

Whether you like the book or not, your opinion will not end the ongoing controversy over whether the Garden of Eden was, in fact, located in upstate New York, or in the far more likely location of Cleveland, Ohio, as most experts now agree that it was.

Teresa Fasolino - Adão e Eva

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