The Vagabonds

by Nicholas Delbanco

When the death of their proud, spirited mother draws the three Saperstone siblings home to Saratoga Springs, New York, they discover a stunning legacy. Almost a century ago, the legendary "Vagabonds" - captains of industry Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone, inventor Thomas Edison, and naturalist John Burroughs - came to town during one of their road trips, leaving behind a scandalous secret and a dazzling windfall.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction

448 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Nicholas Delbanco is the Robert Frost Distinguished University Professor of English Language and Literature at the University of Michigan and Chair of the Hopwood Committee. He has published twenty-five books of fiction and non-fiction. His most recent novels are The Count of Concord and Spring and Fall; his most recent works of non-fiction are The Countess of Stanlein Restored and The Lost Suitcase: Reflections on the Literary Life. As editor he has compiled the work of, among others, John Gardner and Bernard Malamud. The long-term Director of the MFA Program as well as the Hopwood Awards Program at the University of Michigan, he has served as Chair of the Fiction Panel for the National Book Awards, received a Guggenheim Fellowship and, twice, a National Endowment for the Arts Writing Fellowship. Professor Delbanco has just completed a teaching text for McGraw-Hill entitled Literature: Craft and Voice, a three-volume Introduction to Literature of which he is the co-editor with Alan Cheuse; in 2004 he published The Sincerest Form: Writiing Fiction by Imitation. His new non-fiction book, Lastingness: The Art of Old Age will be published by Grand Central Publishing in 2011.
Full Biography

NOTE: The following biography was composed in 2000 by Jon Manchip White and reflects information only up to and including that year.

Nationality: American. Born: London, England, 1942. Education: Harvard University, B.A. 1963; Columbia University, M.A. 1966. Career: Member of Department of Language and Literature, Bennington College, Bennington, Vermont, 1966-84, writing workshop director, 1977-84; professor of English, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York, 1984-85; Robert Frost Professor of English Language and Literature, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1985—. Awards: National Endowment for the Arts creative writing award, 1973, 1982; National Endowment of Composers and Librettists fellowship, 1976; Guggenheim fellowship, 1980; Woodrow Wilson fellowship; Edward John Noble fellowship; New York State CAPS Award; Vermont Council of the Arts Award; Michigan Council of the Arts Award. Agent: Brandt & Brandt Literary Agents, Inc., 1501 Broadway, New York, New York 10036, U.S.A.

As a novelist, Nicholas Delbanco can be considered doubly fortunate in that he has always been able to draw inspiration and sustenance from two continents and two cultures.

Of Italian and German descent, he was born in London at the height of the German Blitz, and his family did not depart for America until he was six, and he was not naturalized as an American citizen until he was eleven. It is not surprising that, though later he would anchor himself firmly in New England and particularly in Vermont, and more recently in Michigan as the Robert Frost Professor of English Language and Literature, the influence of his European origins would play a consistent part in his fiction and non-fiction alike.

The cultural ambivalence, if such it may be called, manifested itself early. At Harvard, his B.A. thesis was devoted to a joint study of Rilke and Heredia, two noteworthy wanderers, and the subject of his M.A. thesis was that tragic outcast, Malcolm Lowry. Examining the numerous novels Delbanco has published to date, one finds that only five are set exclusively in the United States and that the majority are set, either in whole or part, in Provence, Tuscany, Greece, Switzerland, or as far afield as Barbados and Mexico. Several of his non-fiction books are concerned with Europe, one of them a study of that remarkable group of literary exiles, including Conrad, Crane, and James, who lived and worked together in a small corner of England at the turn of the last century. Indeed, one of the courses Delbanco has taught over the years is specifically entitled “Exiles,” and is devoted to Becket, Conrad, and Nabokov, while other courses have featured a gallery of roving and displaced novelists such as Joyce, Lawrence, Forster, Ford, Mann, Fitzgerald, and He

Reviews

[Rhonda · Rating 1 out of 5]

One I had on the bookshelf .. read it ... ok but wouldn't recommended it. No real plot just a snapshot of 3 peoples lives after they inherit or think they are to inherit some money. It's never really clear if they do or what the point of the book was... disappointing I kept thinking it would go somewhere.

[Sue Tustin Lloyd]

Three siblings inherit a large sum of mone from GE stock left their mother by Edison, Ford, Burroughs, and Firestone following a dalliance by one of their employees. Interesting story by an Ann Arbor author with Ann Arbor in the story line.

[Kelli · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars because the writing isn't bad, the story is just pointless. This is the epitome of literary fiction that exists on vibes alone, except there really aren't even any vibes in this one. It's a completely empty book.

[Marcia Seybold · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story about Edison and Firestone and how they used to go camping....

[Dianna · Rating 2 out of 5]

The plot had an intriguing promise, but the development was highly disappointing to me.

[Rona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting historical fiction with notable leaders of early 20th century and the results of one night of abandon.

[Elyse Rudin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. A lot is packed in 294 pages. Three siblings return to Saratoga Springs, N.Y. for the burial and reading of their mother's will. Turns out she is quite wealthy but the manner she acquired her wealth is a wonderful part of the story (Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, Thomas Edison and John Burroughs are the reason). The author mixes fact with fiction and all of it makes for a good read.

[Candy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, it certainly had a few twists and turns! It seemed to be closer to "real life" than some others I've read, meaning that there were some common, everyday life aspects to it. Some might consider them the "slow parts" of the reading, but I felt like it helped show how they each got on and their thoughts along the way.

[Toby Bulloff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting historical backdrop regarding the real life "Vagabonds" who traveled through the U.S. I had a personal interest since it was written by UM English prof, Nick Delbanco and was littered with Ann Arbor references

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

The basic plot had potential. But the writing and the way the story was presented - yuck. It is broken into pieces in an unappealing way for seemingly no reason. The writing had very few appealing passages. Where was the editor?

[Marvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

An inheritance from Thomas Edison, Harvey Firestone, and Henry Ford (based on an experience during one of their camping trips) is passed down through 3 generations to 3 largely estranged siblings. In this case, the inheritance brings the siblings together, as their mother had hoped.

[Dennese · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick and entertaining read about sibling relationships. I enjoyed it for the fiction.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting.

[Lana Russell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good serious fiction.

[Kathryn Lilly]

Okay.spotty

[Sharon Walling · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was difficult to stay with because it felt scattered. The writing rambles all over the place and for me, it was very difficult to hold my attention.

[Niffer · Rating 2 out of 5]

A few months ago I read "The Last Days of Night" by Graham Moore. Thomas Edison was a main character in that book, and didn't come off as being a particularly likeable person. So when I stumbled across this book in the library and read the description talking about Edison and Ford and Firestone and Burroughs hanging out together and traveling and whatever, I was interested in getting another perspective about Edison. An implied mystery about a legacy they left for someone, and then the family finding out about it years later--sounds promising, right? And then the author's note at the beginning of the book mentioned that Edison, Ford, Firestone and Burroughs really did do some traveling together, camping out and calling themselves the Vagabonds. So I turned to the first chapter with great anticipation.

Wow. Did this book ever disappoint. First of all, there's hardly anything at all about the "Vagabonds." I think there were maybe two chapters total, and the only reason the author managed to stretch it out that far was because he talked a lot about someone's cook (maybe Ford's) who was a genius in making food stretch out to feed many people. And the reason behind leaving the legacy was really weak. I didn't really feel as though I bought that they would have felt that sense of obligation--especially Ford, who wasn't even on the trip.

Then there was the story of the family that the Vagabonds left the legacy to. The entire book flipped back and forth between the contemporary story and flashbacks. I don't mind flashbacks, although sometimes they can be a bit confusing. But many of the flashbacks were really pointless. They didn't add anything to the overall story. There were several times when we saw a flashback to someone dying, like the grandfather, and there was nothing about it that was related in any way to the overall plot of the story. We knew the grandfather was dead. I didn't feel like we needed to actually see his death (especially since it mostly happened off scene anyway--Delbanco basically built up to the death and then faded out and the death was implied as the next scene).

I really got the feeling that this book was written because Delbanco was getting pressure from his publisher to write another book. He had a germ of an idea, so he figured he would start to write. But then there was a lot of pressure, so he submitted a half-written first draft that was hastily edited and published. I don't know that that's what happened, but that's the way the book felt. I think there was a strong story idea here, and some good material to work with, but the end result is just half-assed and honestly not worth wasting your time to read.