The Man Who Was Poe

The Man Who Was Poe is a young adult historical fiction novel published in 1989 by Edward Irving Wortis, an award-winning American author who writes under the pen name “Avi.” Set in Providence, Rhode Island in 1848, the story is about the unlikely partnership between Edgar Allan Poe and an 11-year-old London boy named Edmund. The book sources many facts from Poe’s life and works and emulates Poe’s own Gothic style of literature. Edmund turns to Poe—who introduces himself to the boy as Auguste Dupin—for help in finding his aunt, mother, and sister who all disappeared without a trace. 

Plot Summary

The mystery begins with the disappearance of Edmund’s Aunty Pru and several days later, the disappearance of his twin sister, “Sis”. For the last month, the family lived in a rented room in Providence, having left England in search of the children’s mother. Edmund later explains that following the death of his father, his mother remarried to a man named Mr. Rachett. He stole all his wife’s money and fled to Providence, and a year ago Edmund’s mother traveled there seeking a divorce and the return of her money. Not wanting to lose his money or tarnish his image, Rachett—who goes by the alias William Arnold—keeps his wife prisoner for months. Nevertheless, she manages to get a message to Pru. When Rachett learns of Pru’s arrival and her intent to find her twin sister, Rachett kidnaps her too. With the help of a young bank clerk, Randolph Peterson, Rachett devises a plan to kill his wife, which would allow him to remarry, and kidnap Sis so that he and Peterson can use her to rob the vault of gold at the Providence Bank. 

Alone and afraid, Edmund runs into Poe, who arrived in Providence in search of a new story and in hopes of marrying Helen Whitman, the same woman Rachett wants to marry. Intrigued by the prospect of a new mystery to write, Poe—who introduces himself to Edmund as Auguste Dupin—agrees to help the child. That night, they discover Aunty Pru’s drowned body on the docks. They later learn that she selflessly took her sister’s place, tricking Rachett and Peterson when they were ready to kill Mrs. Rachett. Though erratic, unreliable, and frequently drunk, Poe is able to solve the mystery by piecing together various clues over the coming days, including a coded note Rachett writes using the cipher from Poe’s own story.

Edmund finds his mother seeking refuge in a church, and with the help of Asa Throck, a member of the Providence Night Watch, Edmund and Poe lead a victorious boat chase through the stormy bay and rescue Sis. For the duration of their time together, Edmund is frustrated by Dupin’s obsession with “the story,” as Poe demonstrates he cares more about writing and creating his own desired ending than saving anyone’s life. The novel explores themes of social status, fear, artistry, and alcoholism.