Monday, June 23, 2014

Mrs. Poe - Book Review




I just finished reading Mrs. Poe by Lynn Cullen.  I found the book to be engaging and frustrating at the same time.  In general I would say I liked it, and I'm glad I read it, but I'm still not sure what to make of it.  

The book is historical fiction, and Ms. Cullen talks at length in an "Author's Note" at the end about how she researched the history of the characters and the setting.  For her it was important that everything in the story "could" have happened.   The story begins in New York City in 1845 after Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven" has just been published.  The main character is a young poet named Frances Osgood who becomes linked with Poe both professionally and romantically.  In many ways this is a classic example of a gothic romance where there is intrigue and drama with slowly building sexual tension.

The title ambiguously refers to both the real Mrs. Poe, his young bride Virginia, and Mrs. Osgood who is actually mistaken for his wife more than once in the book.  Virginia Poe and Frances Osgood become friends early in the book when Virginia declares she is a fan of Fanny's poetry.  This friendship is strained at times as the romance between Frances and Edgar heats up, and at times the friendship is a useful excuse for Frances and Edgar to get to see each other.  Virginia's mother Mrs. Clemm (Muddy, as she was called by Poe) also plays a large role in the story.  

My enjoyment in the book was just in getting lost in the story and the time.  It was engaging and easy to read.  However, my frustration was in not knowing what was true and what was fiction.  Having taught Poe for many years in school, I'm fairly familiar with his biography and with the common thinking about what he was like.  This book confused what I thought I knew with this author's interpretation of some of his biography.  The book also talks a LOT about many of the other important writers and editors of the day.  Margaret Fuller, Horace Greeley and poet Rufus Griswold figured heavily, and Louisa May Alcott is also mentioned as are many other contemporaries of theirs such as Walt Whitman.  Poe and Osgood attended many salons which were a who's-who of the literati of the time. 

Frances Osgood was married to Samuel Stillman Osgood, an important portrait painter.  He was a well-known philanderer who left her and their 2 children high and dry to go off and paint wealthy women who often became his lovers.  He eventually came home again, but his reputation affected them in many ways.

One thing I found interesting was the description of Lower Manhattan and Greenwich Village from the 1840's.  Central Park was just in discussion at that time, and not everyone thought it was a good idea or necessary.  Manhattan was largely undeveloped.  Cullen also talks about touring Trinity Church as a scene from the book is set there.  She tried to go to all the places she wanted to write about - whether they still existed or had changed - to get a feel for the setting.  

I also found interesting the ideas of marriage that were mentioned.  Divorce was not acceptable at that time, so many couples lived very unhappy lives or had other relationships.  On one hand that lifestyle seemed to be accepted and understood, yet it was still the subject of gossip and ridicule.  There was much talk of a person's "reputation".  You had a bad reputation if you got divorced, and you had a bad reputation if you had an affair.  The characters commented that very few couples had "good" marriages.

I must say, reading this book has inspired me to do some research into the events and lives of some of the people mentioned.  I would recommend this book to lovers of Poe and 19th Century American literature, but I will say it needs to be read with a grain of salt, and the realization that much of it could be fiction.  

If you read it, let me know your thoughts!

:) Amy





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