It's a painstakingly detailed account of every single day of Poe's life and then some. One of my most treasured books I own is The Poe Log (a bit hard to find these days & the ones available are a tad bit pricey, sadly). He also came across as, well, kind of an ass. He completely lost it whenever Edmund slipped and called him Poe. He was borderline at best, jumping from mood to mood - and even identity! He insisted Edmund address him as Auguste Dupin, one of Poe's characters. Avi made Poe seem like a complete lunatic. I'm all for artistic license and taking liberties when it comes to historical figures, but come on. With the reissue of The Man Who Was Poe, plus the fact that, hello, it's POE, I figured this would be the perfect place to start. I know Avi is beloved by school kids the world over, but I honestly can't recall ever reading any of his works. I went into this thinking I'd have a great time. Who is this man, where are his family members, and just what is the man writing? With his mother, aunt, and sister missing, Edmund is on his own with only a strange man to help him.

Unfortunately, when he returns, he discovers his sister is nowhere to be found. Although they were under strict orders from their aunt to stay indoors, Edmund makes the decision to head out in search of food. This mini-review was written for Buried Under Books by jv poore.Īfter being left alone for three days, twins Edmund and Sis have run out of what little food they have. After all, this kid continues to go toe-to-toe with Edgar Allan Poe. I wanted to sympathize with young Edmund, or at least his pathetic predicament but, he’s simply too tenacious and tough to pity. This mystery moves quickly, even with the hair-pin twists and turns.

In Avi’s world, however, it is the perfect plot presentation. There’s something completely quirky about enjoying the interactions between two totally different types of people, neither of which I would expect to covet as a companion in real-life. Fortunately, this Juvenile Historical Fiction was a fast read. Clearly, I had to read The Man Who Was Poe right then. Poe is almost legendary here in Richmond, VA, where he occupies a predominant place in history. This casts Edgar Allan Poe as a supporting character. The name stuck with me, and wouldn’t you know, after digging through my stacks o’ books, I actually had something from this very author!

I had asked the students to fill in a wish-list of books to be added to their classroom library and someone requested a book by Avi.

Meaning, of course, that one of “my” students brought him to my attention. I have just “discovered” the author, Avi.

The Man Who Was Poe by Avi