Mark Twain's boyhood friends and haunts in Hannibal, Missouri, became characters and places in his most beloved novels: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Nearly a century after the author's death, strolling the streets of this Mississippi River town (105 miles northwest of St. Louis) is like slipping between the covers of those books.

You can tour the modest, 1840s white clapboard house where Twain (and Tom Sawyer) grew up. It's still framed by a stretch of whitewashed fence immortalized in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

The Mark Twain Boyhood Home and Museum are the centerpiece of a downtown historical district. Within the district, you can visit the law offices of Twain's father, the Becky Thatcher home (Laura Hawkins' house in real life) and several other structures. Nearby, climb Cardiff Hill, tour Mark Twain Cave (McDougal's Cave in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer) and take in the view from Inspiration Point.

Every July (July 3-6, this year) National Tom Sawyer Days draws a throng of Twain admirers. There's a tricycle race, pet show, mud volleyball, backseat-driving contest, and lots of arts and crafts, music and food. The main events come from Twain's books: a frog jumping contest and a fence whitewashing competition. Finally, local kids compete to become the official Tom and Becky. The winning Tom receives a cane fishing pole and Becky is awarded a slate chalkboard.

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