The Kansas City Public Library celebrates the life and work of Mark Twain with Twain and His Times throughout February 2009. This program complements the Reading Missouri initiative, encouraging patrons to read Missouri writers.

Dennis Okerstrom focuses on The Inner Side of Laughter: The Humor of Mark Twain on Tuesday, February 17, at 6:30 p.m. at the Central Library.

The continued appeal of Twain’s works owes in part to his still-lively sense of humor, according to some critics. That humor often carried a bitter tone, developed in reaction to tragic incidents in his life. A study of his literature and life reveals Twain as akin to a clown whose painted smile covers a morose visage.

Okerstrom is an English professor at Park University who specializes in American literature.