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Rose & Poe
Set in mythical Belle Coeur County in a time not too far from our own, Rose & Poe gloriously re-imagines Shakespeare's The Tempest from the point of view of Caliban and his mother. Rose and her giant, simple son, Poe, live quietly on the fringes of their town-tending their goats and working at odd jobs. Prosper Thorne, banished from his big-city law practice and worrying about his fading memory, obsessively watches over his beloved daughter Miranda. When Poe erupts from the forest one day carrying Miranda's bruised and bloody body, he is arrested, despite his protestations of get help-get help-get help. Overnight, Rose and Poe find themselves pariahs in the county where they have lived all their lives. In the face of bitter hatred and threats from her neighbors, the implacable Rose devotes all her strength to proving Poe's innocence and saving him from prison or worse. Rose & Poe is a tale of a mother's boundless love for an apparently unlovable child, and a stunning fable for our own troubled times. It will stick in your memory like sweet wild honey.
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First published October 17, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
May 23, 2017
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Jack Todd, and the publisher, ECW Press, for this opportunity.
Set in the mythical Belle Coeur County, this is the tale of free-spirited Rose and her gentle giant of a son, Poe, who live a quiet and relatively secluded life at the edge of town. Their simple existence is supplemented by Poe's careful work building a wall for the wealthy Proper Thorne. Thorne and his daughter, Miranda, live more opulent but no less secluded lives. The families have peacefully coexisted, on the periphery of village life, despite Thorne's increasingly fragile mental state and Poe's child-like understanding of the world.
All that changes one fateful day, when Poe is seen emerging from the bordering woods carrying the bloody and prostrate body of Miranda. Without her testimony about the attack, suspicions fall on the giant stature of Poe. His differences are suddenly called into question and the idyllic village life is irrecoverably soured for every inhabitant.
This was a glorious retelling of Shakespeare's The Tempest. I read the original and this more modern-day re-imagining back-to-back, and it really enhanced my reading of the later. I saw subtle similarities in character and phrase I might have otherwise missed and it added another element to this already astounding tale.
Each individual had a distinct voice and a realness to their character, but none more so than the immediately lovable Poe. His differences made him both an intriguing perspective to read from and enhanced the the reader's understanding of this world's definition of 'normal' and 'other'. 'Normal' went hand-in-hand with 'accepted' and Poe feels the sway of a collected society gather against him after his traumatic encounter with his beloved child-hood friend, Miranda.
His reduced mental acuity and understanding of the situation that follows also makes this a heart-breaking account. Society's treatment of Poe, as well as his now-outcast mother, made this a poingnant and tearful read. Often because of the similarities to our own present society. How often do we see differences shunned and a lack of understanding as the root cause for so much tragedy? This satirical edge brought home the unjustness of the events that followed.
The traumatic proceedings culminated into making the later part of this novel have aspects similar to that of a legal thriller, which combined seamlessly into the more fantastical previous elements. All facets of this story had a reason for existing there and intermingled to bring this powerful and thought-provoking story to life. This not only did its Shakespearean predecessor justice, but is a profound story in its own right.
Set in the mythical Belle Coeur County, this is the tale of free-spirited Rose and her gentle giant of a son, Poe, who live a quiet and relatively secluded life at the edge of town. Their simple existence is supplemented by Poe's careful work building a wall for the wealthy Proper Thorne. Thorne and his daughter, Miranda, live more opulent but no less secluded lives. The families have peacefully coexisted, on the periphery of village life, despite Thorne's increasingly fragile mental state and Poe's child-like understanding of the world.
All that changes one fateful day, when Poe is seen emerging from the bordering woods carrying the bloody and prostrate body of Miranda. Without her testimony about the attack, suspicions fall on the giant stature of Poe. His differences are suddenly called into question and the idyllic village life is irrecoverably soured for every inhabitant.
This was a glorious retelling of Shakespeare's The Tempest. I read the original and this more modern-day re-imagining back-to-back, and it really enhanced my reading of the later. I saw subtle similarities in character and phrase I might have otherwise missed and it added another element to this already astounding tale.
Each individual had a distinct voice and a realness to their character, but none more so than the immediately lovable Poe. His differences made him both an intriguing perspective to read from and enhanced the the reader's understanding of this world's definition of 'normal' and 'other'. 'Normal' went hand-in-hand with 'accepted' and Poe feels the sway of a collected society gather against him after his traumatic encounter with his beloved child-hood friend, Miranda.
His reduced mental acuity and understanding of the situation that follows also makes this a heart-breaking account. Society's treatment of Poe, as well as his now-outcast mother, made this a poingnant and tearful read. Often because of the similarities to our own present society. How often do we see differences shunned and a lack of understanding as the root cause for so much tragedy? This satirical edge brought home the unjustness of the events that followed.
The traumatic proceedings culminated into making the later part of this novel have aspects similar to that of a legal thriller, which combined seamlessly into the more fantastical previous elements. All facets of this story had a reason for existing there and intermingled to bring this powerful and thought-provoking story to life. This not only did its Shakespearean predecessor justice, but is a profound story in its own right.
November 25, 2017
Sweetness
The blurb calls this a rewriting of The Tempest from the point of view of Caliban and his mother, but it would be easy to make too much of this. True, there is a grand old man, Prosper Thorne, exiled in a similar way to his near-namesake and also the possessor of a wondrous staff, but he is only a minor presence, suffering from dementia. True, he has a daughter called Miranda, who is every bit as lovely as Shakespeare’s heroine. True there are very minor characters who bear a passing similarity to Ariel, Stefano, and Trinculo. And true above all that Poe, the Caliban figure, is what many people might call a monster: over seven foot tall, big-boned, with a hump on his back, eyes that do not match, and six fingers or toes on each hand or foot. He cannot read, write, or do arithmetic, but he is strong, loyal, and kind. As his mother Rose admits…
======
As we have seen from the Hogarth Shakespeare Series (whose star, in my opinion is also based on The Tempest, Margaret Atwood’s Hag-Seed), the task of modernizing Shakespeare risks losing the scale of the original by bringing his characters closer to the everyday world. In Rose & Poe, Jack Todd gives a fascinating glimpse of what he might have written had he stayed in the antic vein, with a section on Prosper Thorne stalking the Maine woods with his carved stick, his fabula animi. But this is almost the last we see of Prosper, and in turning his attention back to Poe, Todd writes in a different register entirely. I cannot say he was wrong to do so, but I still treasure the magnificence of that earlier vision:
The blurb calls this a rewriting of The Tempest from the point of view of Caliban and his mother, but it would be easy to make too much of this. True, there is a grand old man, Prosper Thorne, exiled in a similar way to his near-namesake and also the possessor of a wondrous staff, but he is only a minor presence, suffering from dementia. True, he has a daughter called Miranda, who is every bit as lovely as Shakespeare’s heroine. True there are very minor characters who bear a passing similarity to Ariel, Stefano, and Trinculo. And true above all that Poe, the Caliban figure, is what many people might call a monster: over seven foot tall, big-boned, with a hump on his back, eyes that do not match, and six fingers or toes on each hand or foot. He cannot read, write, or do arithmetic, but he is strong, loyal, and kind. As his mother Rose admits…
…Poe has his addlements and peculiarities. That ain’t to say he’s nobody’s fool, only he don’t do no editions nor suttractions, and he can’t read for squat. But he’s a good boy. He does right by his mother, and he does right by other folks. I believe that’s worth more than ciphers.The Tempest connection, in short, is only the proscenium frame for the ensuing action. Once the curtain is raised, the focus of the book is entirely upon Poe, the gentle giant, and the extraordinary strength and love shown by his mother Rose, who is as different from Shakespeare’s Sycorax as you could imagine. Her first test comes at the age of 16, when she fights the state trying to put her baby into an institution. And she wins:
The judge had seen plenty of hate in his courtroom. […] Love was an emotion he saw less often. He saw how tenderly she held her baby, and he believed she could give him something no one else could. Such a child would never be adopted. Without Rose, he would become a ward of the state in perpetuity.When reading one book, I can never stop thinking of other books as comparisons, and of course I thought about Lenny in Of Mice and Men. Jack Todd writes with much of Steinbeck’s poetic simplicity too. But Poe is an even more sympathetic character than Lenny, and incapable of his violence. Instead of impending tragedy, when reading this book, I felt nothing so much as sweetness. Even on the day when things will begin to go terribly wrong, I never lost my trust in the basic goodness of the story, no matter how subtly Todd tried to shadow the atmosphere:
Poe stoops to lean his great head on Rose’s shoulder, then hoists his fishing pole and tackle box and sets out. A fine morning has tilted on a whiff of breeze-borne minor key into a sullen afternoon and there is the threat of more rain. The sun is filtered through haze that thickens into cloud, and the birds are oddly silent. Everywhere burst milkweed has scattered, and the spidery threads dangle from the maples like Halloween decorations.That fishing trip, though, turns into near-tragedy and unleashes a chain of events that Poe does not have the wit to put right. The Tempest is left far behind. Now I was thinking of a different comparison, To Kill a Mockingbird, without the racial element, but with another court case and all the unthinking bigotry that a small rural town (this one in Northern Maine) can stir up. Jack Todd matches Harper Lee in humanity too; there may only be a few good people in his world, but they make all the difference. By this time, I was feeling firmly in five-star territory. Later, I wondered if the tone might have been a little too sweet, and if the ultimate outcome was too predictable. But then he threw me a few curves I didn’t expect, so five it is.
======
As we have seen from the Hogarth Shakespeare Series (whose star, in my opinion is also based on The Tempest, Margaret Atwood’s Hag-Seed), the task of modernizing Shakespeare risks losing the scale of the original by bringing his characters closer to the everyday world. In Rose & Poe, Jack Todd gives a fascinating glimpse of what he might have written had he stayed in the antic vein, with a section on Prosper Thorne stalking the Maine woods with his carved stick, his fabula animi. But this is almost the last we see of Prosper, and in turning his attention back to Poe, Todd writes in a different register entirely. I cannot say he was wrong to do so, but I still treasure the magnificence of that earlier vision:
Here the forest is a tangle of beech and fir and maple trees, leavened with the occasional hackberry or black oak. He pauses where shafts of sunlight pierce the heavy foliage overhead, stands with his arms spread wide, the walking stick upraised. There is magic in this forest. He can feel it. Odd creatures are birthed here, fully formed from the first moments of their existence, luminous and fantastical beasts, scales and skin and fur still damp from their birth, gliding down from the highest branches to caper in the shadows below. For a few moments, he can see them clearly, their lavender stripes, spiraling golden horns, and six-armed bodies. They drift down, their flanks quivering in the breeze.
October 19, 2017
Oh, my heart. This story packs such an emotional punch! The writing is simple and lovely – you will absolutely fall in love with both Rose and Poe. Poe immediately brought to mind Big John from The Green Mile, Lennie from Of Mice and Men, and a few shades of Charlie from Flowers for Algernon. Rose is a large, simple woman who loves her son with all the fierceness of a mama tiger – she is his advocate, his care-giver, and his closest friend. When they are together, they rarely need or want for anything else. I wanted to pump my fist in the air every time Rose won a battle for Poe….and battle she did. From the very beginning, when the doctors thought it best he be taken away from her and institutionalized, to the time the army drafted him in spite of his mental state, to the accusations that arose after he was found running from the forrest, carrying his battered and bloody friend, desperately crying to ‘get-help-get-help’ – Rose never gave up on her boy. She’d just take a deep breath and throw herself back into the fray for her son.
My only tweaky item with this book was that the timeline was a teensy bit unclear. Thinking back on it now, it seems there are two main time periods in play here, but the transition from one to the other wasn’t completely clear to me at the time I was reading– it felt like the story was progressing fairly continuously, but I think there was actually a gap of time between Poe’s childhood and his being drafted into the Army (Vietnam era, I’m assuming) and the present-day trial storyline. But that didn’t at all detract from my enjoyment of the story.
The book is said to be loosely based on Shakespeare’s The Tempest, which almost frightened me off (don’t ask – let’s just say I had a traumatizing AP English experience with Shakespeare and I’ll never be the same), but I didn’t really feel any Bard-ish vibes. This story is just amazing, no matter what the author based it on.
A story that’s big on feelings, I think it will stick with its readers for a long time. A big ol’ Poe-sized thanks to the lovelies at ECW Press, who allowed me to read a digital copy of this – I am so grateful it found me.
My only tweaky item with this book was that the timeline was a teensy bit unclear. Thinking back on it now, it seems there are two main time periods in play here, but the transition from one to the other wasn’t completely clear to me at the time I was reading– it felt like the story was progressing fairly continuously, but I think there was actually a gap of time between Poe’s childhood and his being drafted into the Army (Vietnam era, I’m assuming) and the present-day trial storyline. But that didn’t at all detract from my enjoyment of the story.
The book is said to be loosely based on Shakespeare’s The Tempest, which almost frightened me off (don’t ask – let’s just say I had a traumatizing AP English experience with Shakespeare and I’ll never be the same), but I didn’t really feel any Bard-ish vibes. This story is just amazing, no matter what the author based it on.
A story that’s big on feelings, I think it will stick with its readers for a long time. A big ol’ Poe-sized thanks to the lovelies at ECW Press, who allowed me to read a digital copy of this – I am so grateful it found me.
October 17, 2017
Having recently read Hag-Seed, Margaret Atwood's contribution to the Hogarth contemporary takes on Shakespearean plays, I was somewhat reluctant to read this, however it is an entirely different approach to The Tempest. The titles refer to characters based on Caliban in the original and his relationship to his mother, but unlike the Hogarth, Rose & Poe bypasses any relationship to theater or play production, instead presenting a mythic fable-like tale set in, I believe, northern Vermont, and Poe is a mentally challenged behemoth of a man, gentle in spite of his strength, and his goat rearing mother is his support and a force against the rest of the world that doesn't really understand him. The pages flew by, and it reminded me of when I used to love reading as a child and could get lost in a book for an entire afternoon.
June 5, 2017
This glorious little book is the retelling of Shakespeare’s play The Tempest but you needn’t have read the play to understand the book or be touched by its beauty.
Set in the mythical Belle Coeur County up alongside the Canadian border, independent orphan Rose becomes a pregnant teen and gives birth to the gargantuan Poe. Born eighteen pounds, he has a hump on his back, a port wine birthmark the shape of Africa on his face; he has six fingers and six toes and is meek and gentle as a lamb. Rose fights the establishment to keep her child and settles into life as a single parent with no support from her anyone. Suddenly the scene shifts and we discover Poe as a grown man, still soft and simple, and Rose making their way through life the best they can doing menial and tough jobs for little to no money because ‘ they don’t know no better’ and Rose making goats cheese from their own flock of goats. We discover that they have few close friends but live happily on the edges of the town and find peace and happiness with each other.
Poe does have a dear friend in the form of Miranda, who is younger than he is, but devoted to him, baking treats and teaching him how to divide them up during his work day and spending time with him doing simple things such as fishing. Poe adores Miranda, but also sees her as a sexual being, although he would never act upon his desires. Or would he? Seen one day carrying an unconscious Miranda out of the forest beaten and obviously sexually assaulted, naturally suspicion falls on Poe, who is unable to defend himself and unhelpfully Miranda has no recollection of the attack. A trial takes place and some of the townsfolk are unhappy with the outcome and take matters into their own hands. Misery is enacted upon Rose and Poe who are helpless against the onslaught. But is the attack warranted? Did Poe actually do the unthinkable?
Every page of this novel is filled with glorious, simple descriptions such as a buttermilk moon or a charcoal ribbon of cloud. The characters are easy to identify with. Poe, despite appearances otherwise, is a kind child-man who only ever wants to be loved and useful. Rose is strong and you can’t help but feel like life owes her a kindly turn or two. When things start to go wrong for Poe, you instantly feel defensive over him, knowing him to be a compliant soul.
The story has the ability to whisk you away to a time and place that you can’t really put a handle on and yet is timeless in its truth. Todd weaves a kind of magic with his prose, perhaps unfairly unexpected when you consider that he is a sports commentator based in Montreal. The writing doesn’t flinch away from the brutal side of situations and yet is able to create a mist of enchantment around it at the same time. Themes of love, acceptance and the way society is quick to judge the ones who differentiate from the norm are explored. At times Rose and Poe reads as if a fairy tale and yet is rooted soundly in reality. This is a beautiful, tragic, powerful and rich story and well worth the read.
Set in the mythical Belle Coeur County up alongside the Canadian border, independent orphan Rose becomes a pregnant teen and gives birth to the gargantuan Poe. Born eighteen pounds, he has a hump on his back, a port wine birthmark the shape of Africa on his face; he has six fingers and six toes and is meek and gentle as a lamb. Rose fights the establishment to keep her child and settles into life as a single parent with no support from her anyone. Suddenly the scene shifts and we discover Poe as a grown man, still soft and simple, and Rose making their way through life the best they can doing menial and tough jobs for little to no money because ‘ they don’t know no better’ and Rose making goats cheese from their own flock of goats. We discover that they have few close friends but live happily on the edges of the town and find peace and happiness with each other.
Poe does have a dear friend in the form of Miranda, who is younger than he is, but devoted to him, baking treats and teaching him how to divide them up during his work day and spending time with him doing simple things such as fishing. Poe adores Miranda, but also sees her as a sexual being, although he would never act upon his desires. Or would he? Seen one day carrying an unconscious Miranda out of the forest beaten and obviously sexually assaulted, naturally suspicion falls on Poe, who is unable to defend himself and unhelpfully Miranda has no recollection of the attack. A trial takes place and some of the townsfolk are unhappy with the outcome and take matters into their own hands. Misery is enacted upon Rose and Poe who are helpless against the onslaught. But is the attack warranted? Did Poe actually do the unthinkable?
Every page of this novel is filled with glorious, simple descriptions such as a buttermilk moon or a charcoal ribbon of cloud. The characters are easy to identify with. Poe, despite appearances otherwise, is a kind child-man who only ever wants to be loved and useful. Rose is strong and you can’t help but feel like life owes her a kindly turn or two. When things start to go wrong for Poe, you instantly feel defensive over him, knowing him to be a compliant soul.
The story has the ability to whisk you away to a time and place that you can’t really put a handle on and yet is timeless in its truth. Todd weaves a kind of magic with his prose, perhaps unfairly unexpected when you consider that he is a sports commentator based in Montreal. The writing doesn’t flinch away from the brutal side of situations and yet is able to create a mist of enchantment around it at the same time. Themes of love, acceptance and the way society is quick to judge the ones who differentiate from the norm are explored. At times Rose and Poe reads as if a fairy tale and yet is rooted soundly in reality. This is a beautiful, tragic, powerful and rich story and well worth the read.
October 22, 2017
Shakespeare’s plays are fertile ground for reinvention with contemporary authors recasting the stories with new context and even new interpretations. Jack Todd took on the reimagination of The Tempest with Rose & Poe. While The Tempest is centered on Prospero and Miranda, Rose & Poe is about Sycorax and Caliban.
Poe is a simple, gentle giant with six digits on all his hands and feet, with a hump on his back and a huge birthmark. He cannot read and can only tell time twice a day. He spends his day milking their goats, fishing, and building a stone wall for his neighbor Prosper Thorne, whose daughter Miranda is one of his few good friends.
When Miranda is assaulted during a tempestuous storm that takes out the roads and cuts Belle Coeur County off, Poe carried her broken body from the old gravel pit where he found her. Calling “help her – help her” he is still the natural suspect because, of course, he is. The strange and outcast are always suspect.
I enjoyed Rose & Poe quite a bit. It is exciting to see Caliban take center stage and the dead Sycorax reanimated, a living, loving mother. It reads more like a fable, the characters are archetypes, there is this uncanny magical element in the story with the violent storm that erases all evidence that could prove or disprove Poe’s innocence or guilt, and the story reveals a moral lesson for the community and of course, for the reader.
The story is heartbreaking, but then Caliban is a tragic figure. I was moved by Rose’s powerful love for her son and by Poe’s confusion. There are also moments of sly humor that will make you smile.
It was interesting to contrast this with Hag-Seed, Margaret Atwood’s version of The Tempest written for the Hogarth Shakespeare series. They could not be more different and yet they are both phenomenal recasting of a classic.
I received an e-galley of Rose & Poe from the publisher through Edelweiss.
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpre...
Poe is a simple, gentle giant with six digits on all his hands and feet, with a hump on his back and a huge birthmark. He cannot read and can only tell time twice a day. He spends his day milking their goats, fishing, and building a stone wall for his neighbor Prosper Thorne, whose daughter Miranda is one of his few good friends.
When Miranda is assaulted during a tempestuous storm that takes out the roads and cuts Belle Coeur County off, Poe carried her broken body from the old gravel pit where he found her. Calling “help her – help her” he is still the natural suspect because, of course, he is. The strange and outcast are always suspect.
I enjoyed Rose & Poe quite a bit. It is exciting to see Caliban take center stage and the dead Sycorax reanimated, a living, loving mother. It reads more like a fable, the characters are archetypes, there is this uncanny magical element in the story with the violent storm that erases all evidence that could prove or disprove Poe’s innocence or guilt, and the story reveals a moral lesson for the community and of course, for the reader.
The story is heartbreaking, but then Caliban is a tragic figure. I was moved by Rose’s powerful love for her son and by Poe’s confusion. There are also moments of sly humor that will make you smile.
It was interesting to contrast this with Hag-Seed, Margaret Atwood’s version of The Tempest written for the Hogarth Shakespeare series. They could not be more different and yet they are both phenomenal recasting of a classic.
I received an e-galley of Rose & Poe from the publisher through Edelweiss.
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpre...
January 5, 2018
The attitudes and the whole small-town feel of Rose & Poe was really nice. I liked how much of a tight-knit community that they have surrounded themselves with (well, the people that accept them for who they are).
Read my full review on my blog, ReadingMaria: https://mariazuppardi.wordpress.com/2...
Read my full review on my blog, ReadingMaria: https://mariazuppardi.wordpress.com/2...
April 23, 2017
* Thank you to ECW Press and Goodreads for the advanced copy that made this review possible!
In this reimagining of Shakespeare's The Tempest, Jack Todd has provided us with a novel about the power of immeasurable love and the frightening consequences of ignorance.
Poe was born different in nearly every conceivable way. With six fingers on each hand, six toes on each foot, and a size and strength unequaled in their small community, he possesses an awesome physical power. And yet his mind has remained, in many ways, like that of a young child. Aside from a talent for memory of clothing and colours, he is unable to read, write, do sums, or understand much beyond simple speech. His lifeline is his mother, Rose, who has fought for him since he was born and continues to help him navigate a world that fails to understand him. She alone appreciates his gentle dazzlement of the natural world and his abiding kindness to all living creatures great and small. But even she can't protect him from the storm that is about to rage around them.
While fishing one afternoon, Poe happens to witness the brutal assault of Miranda Thorne, the beloved daughter of a former star lawyer. He carries her unconscious body for a mile and a half until he collapses at the feet of the local sherriff. Despite his obvious attempts to save her life and his contant muttering of "Get help get help get help," he is arrested and charged with the crime.
Now the community that has seemed to accept Rose and Poe all these years will be divided in a bitter trial to get at the truth of what happened to Miranda on that fateful day. A powerful storm has washed out the crime scene, Poe is unable to properly defend himself, and Miranda's memory of the three weeks leading up to the attack were lost to her life-threatening injuries. And even if Poe can escape the grip of the legal system, there are far more nefarious forces threatening to destroy him and Rose - the angry townsfolk who want to believe that Poe is the monster they have thought him to be all along.
My Thoughts:
You will be hard-pressed to forget gentle Poe and his mother Rose, who loves him with a fierce, visceral strength. Rose is steadfast and straightforward in her dealings with the world at large. After giving birth by herself at sixteen, she fought to keep Poe when the system wanted him locked away in institutions. She has carved out a comfortable, quiet life for the two of them. She demonstrates a tremendous capacity for compassion and forgiveness. Rose is truly a remarkable character.
The simplicity of the story allows the reader profound introspection on the central message of the book. It is especially poignant in an age where it is becoming more difficult, and yet, increasingly important, to look past our individual differences and resist rushing to judgement of our fellow humans. The story reads like a fable, although the lines between good and evil are sufficiently blurred to create some literary depth and tension. It explores the fickleness of mob mentality and the dangers of idly convicting someone in our minds. Rose and Poe certainly has something to teach us about humanity and accepting our most authentic selves.
Part crime/court novel, part legend, reminiscent of Of Mice and Men and The Tempest, you should be sure to add this to your TBR and snap it up as soon as it's available! No background knowlege of Shakespeare required (although I'm sure having some would only add to the enjoyment of this book).
In this reimagining of Shakespeare's The Tempest, Jack Todd has provided us with a novel about the power of immeasurable love and the frightening consequences of ignorance.
Poe was born different in nearly every conceivable way. With six fingers on each hand, six toes on each foot, and a size and strength unequaled in their small community, he possesses an awesome physical power. And yet his mind has remained, in many ways, like that of a young child. Aside from a talent for memory of clothing and colours, he is unable to read, write, do sums, or understand much beyond simple speech. His lifeline is his mother, Rose, who has fought for him since he was born and continues to help him navigate a world that fails to understand him. She alone appreciates his gentle dazzlement of the natural world and his abiding kindness to all living creatures great and small. But even she can't protect him from the storm that is about to rage around them.
While fishing one afternoon, Poe happens to witness the brutal assault of Miranda Thorne, the beloved daughter of a former star lawyer. He carries her unconscious body for a mile and a half until he collapses at the feet of the local sherriff. Despite his obvious attempts to save her life and his contant muttering of "Get help get help get help," he is arrested and charged with the crime.
Now the community that has seemed to accept Rose and Poe all these years will be divided in a bitter trial to get at the truth of what happened to Miranda on that fateful day. A powerful storm has washed out the crime scene, Poe is unable to properly defend himself, and Miranda's memory of the three weeks leading up to the attack were lost to her life-threatening injuries. And even if Poe can escape the grip of the legal system, there are far more nefarious forces threatening to destroy him and Rose - the angry townsfolk who want to believe that Poe is the monster they have thought him to be all along.
My Thoughts:
You will be hard-pressed to forget gentle Poe and his mother Rose, who loves him with a fierce, visceral strength. Rose is steadfast and straightforward in her dealings with the world at large. After giving birth by herself at sixteen, she fought to keep Poe when the system wanted him locked away in institutions. She has carved out a comfortable, quiet life for the two of them. She demonstrates a tremendous capacity for compassion and forgiveness. Rose is truly a remarkable character.
The simplicity of the story allows the reader profound introspection on the central message of the book. It is especially poignant in an age where it is becoming more difficult, and yet, increasingly important, to look past our individual differences and resist rushing to judgement of our fellow humans. The story reads like a fable, although the lines between good and evil are sufficiently blurred to create some literary depth and tension. It explores the fickleness of mob mentality and the dangers of idly convicting someone in our minds. Rose and Poe certainly has something to teach us about humanity and accepting our most authentic selves.
Part crime/court novel, part legend, reminiscent of Of Mice and Men and The Tempest, you should be sure to add this to your TBR and snap it up as soon as it's available! No background knowlege of Shakespeare required (although I'm sure having some would only add to the enjoyment of this book).
May 2, 2017
“Rose & Poe” was not what I expected for a retelling of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest.’ The setting is an imaginary county (in MA, I believe) in somewhat modern times. The first 30-40% of the book sets up the two named characters, Rose, and her son, Poe. Rose had a harsh childhood and when she got pregnant as a teenager, she decided she was going to keep the baby- even though everyone wanted to take him from her. She loved him fiercely, although others couldn’t see what she saw in her huge child with six fingers and six toes. We learn about their past- how Poe was unable to play football, even though his enormous size was a big advantage, because he couldn’t tackle others or understand why they were attacking him; how Poe was unable to learn at school but has a good memory and learns things in his own way; and how Poe was enlisted in the military for the war, and Rose followed him across the country to wait until the military figured out they had made a mistake.
Rose and Poe do odd jobs around town to provide for themselves. We meet Thorne and his beautiful daughter, Miranda, who has been at school to become a lawyer. Her boyfriend Sebastian does not belong in the country, but his obsession with her has driven him to follow her to Belle Coeur. Poe is building a wall for Thorne, and he has known Miranda since he was little. He loves her in his own way. One day, when he is out taking a nap, he wakes to see Miranda out on a picnic blanket, and realizes she is not alone. Miranda is actually intending to break up with her boyfriend and send him back to the city. However, Poe soon witnesses Miranda being abused, assaulted, and battered. As soon as he is able to free himself from the small door, he runs to her and knows he must get help- a refrain he repeats while he carries her miles to the road, where he is found by a local sheriff. To compound the trouble, a powerful storm washes through and destroys the crime scene.
Despite his urgent cries for help and seeming gentle nature, considering Miranda and he are covered in blood and semen, and there are no other suspects in sight, the police charge Poe with her assault. Rose knows gentle Poe could never do such a thing, but the people of the town have their pitchforks out and are set on his death- they don’t need any evidence. Luckily, Lambert agrees to be Poe’s lawyer (so as to spare him from the public defender who wants him to just plead insanity to the crime he never committed), and the court trial begins to determine his guilt. Even though Miranda eventually recovers, she has lost the last few months of her memory and cannot remember what happened to her. The court trial is really a series of obstacles and difficulties for the innocent Poe and his fiercely protective mother, Rose.
This book really delves into the dangers of being different and misunderstood- and the fallacy of the stubborn human belief in/determination of right and wrong. Evidence and the law don’t matter when convicted by public opinion. We, as readers, know that he is innocent, and it makes the witch hunt/mob mentality that much more difficult. The main themes of the book are the capacity of a mother’s love and the cruelty that comes from misunderstanding leading to persecution of someone who is innocent but different. It’s a strong story, written in tones like a fable, and one that is unforgettable.
Please note that I received an ARC from the publisher through netgalley. All opinions are my own.
Rose and Poe do odd jobs around town to provide for themselves. We meet Thorne and his beautiful daughter, Miranda, who has been at school to become a lawyer. Her boyfriend Sebastian does not belong in the country, but his obsession with her has driven him to follow her to Belle Coeur. Poe is building a wall for Thorne, and he has known Miranda since he was little. He loves her in his own way. One day, when he is out taking a nap, he wakes to see Miranda out on a picnic blanket, and realizes she is not alone. Miranda is actually intending to break up with her boyfriend and send him back to the city. However, Poe soon witnesses Miranda being abused, assaulted, and battered. As soon as he is able to free himself from the small door, he runs to her and knows he must get help- a refrain he repeats while he carries her miles to the road, where he is found by a local sheriff. To compound the trouble, a powerful storm washes through and destroys the crime scene.
Despite his urgent cries for help and seeming gentle nature, considering Miranda and he are covered in blood and semen, and there are no other suspects in sight, the police charge Poe with her assault. Rose knows gentle Poe could never do such a thing, but the people of the town have their pitchforks out and are set on his death- they don’t need any evidence. Luckily, Lambert agrees to be Poe’s lawyer (so as to spare him from the public defender who wants him to just plead insanity to the crime he never committed), and the court trial begins to determine his guilt. Even though Miranda eventually recovers, she has lost the last few months of her memory and cannot remember what happened to her. The court trial is really a series of obstacles and difficulties for the innocent Poe and his fiercely protective mother, Rose.
This book really delves into the dangers of being different and misunderstood- and the fallacy of the stubborn human belief in/determination of right and wrong. Evidence and the law don’t matter when convicted by public opinion. We, as readers, know that he is innocent, and it makes the witch hunt/mob mentality that much more difficult. The main themes of the book are the capacity of a mother’s love and the cruelty that comes from misunderstanding leading to persecution of someone who is innocent but different. It’s a strong story, written in tones like a fable, and one that is unforgettable.
Please note that I received an ARC from the publisher through netgalley. All opinions are my own.
September 18, 2017
Thanks to ECW Press for an advanced copy of Rose & Poe by Jack Todd. This book is due out October 17th and I'm anticipating that it will get a lot of buzz. Put this one on your list. This book squeezed my heart and is a relevant read addressing hatred for others who may look or be different than us. 📚This book is advertised as a modern re-telling of the Tempest but from the viewpoint of Caliban (Poe). Rose gives birth to Poe as a young, poor 15 year-old. Poe is over 18 pounds when he is born, has six fingers and six toes on each hand and foot, and has a large port wine stain on his face and body. He is simple-minded and grows into a giant of a man at over 7 feet and 400 lbs. Though huge, Poe is gentle and kind and his mother's love for him is fierce. Prosper and Miranda appear in this book though Prosper only thinks he causes the storm through his dementia riddled mind. The sprite Ariel appears as a Airmail an almost fairytale-like character. And Sebastian shows up as the son of Prosper's arch enemy. Miranda even references Romeo and Juliet at one point which was clever. As the story unfolds, Poe discovers Miranda brutally beaten and carries her for miles to get help at which time he is accused of and arrested for the attack. Poe is unable to articulate what actually happened that day but the townspeople are quick to judge and hate rises. In addition, Miranda suffers amnesia after the attack so is unable to provide details or help Poe's defense. Jack Todd classifies this book as a fable and the town is described as mythical but no part was unbelievable to me, nor did the story come across as a children's fairytale that stretches the imagination. (There is some adult content so it's definitely not a children's read).
October 7, 2017
See my review at Reading World.
July 18, 2017
I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
A modernish retelling of The Tempest set in Belle Coeur County, Massachusetts. This story follows the characters of Rose&Poe or if you're familiar with The Tempest, a more likeable Sycorax and Caliban.
I had not previously read or known much about The Tempest prior to reading this book. It's hard for me to say how this compares to the original or if it's better/worse.
I can judge the book on it's own merits. While it's obvious some characters had to exist because of the original text, it never felt like it was forced. Airmail the courier who shows up randomly both summoned and mysteriously is obviously Aerial the sprite, but the oddity of his existence feels right even in this book. The book itself has fantastical elements, without really coming off as being a fantasy book, which I'm sure owes a lot to The Tempest.
If The Tempest is about a parent's unconditional love of their child and also deception by an associate, then Rose and Poe captured it well.
I do think that it could have benefited from "more". Adding to some of the story, building up some characters, etc... I can't tell if it's the book staying true to the original play or if it's on the author.
A modernish retelling of The Tempest set in Belle Coeur County, Massachusetts. This story follows the characters of Rose&Poe or if you're familiar with The Tempest, a more likeable Sycorax and Caliban.
I had not previously read or known much about The Tempest prior to reading this book. It's hard for me to say how this compares to the original or if it's better/worse.
I can judge the book on it's own merits. While it's obvious some characters had to exist because of the original text, it never felt like it was forced. Airmail the courier who shows up randomly both summoned and mysteriously is obviously Aerial the sprite, but the oddity of his existence feels right even in this book. The book itself has fantastical elements, without really coming off as being a fantasy book, which I'm sure owes a lot to The Tempest.
If The Tempest is about a parent's unconditional love of their child and also deception by an associate, then Rose and Poe captured it well.
I do think that it could have benefited from "more". Adding to some of the story, building up some characters, etc... I can't tell if it's the book staying true to the original play or if it's on the author.
March 21, 2018
Rose & POE
Jack Todd
2017
This volume is a wonderful tale of love, desire, family, community and goats.
Should be required reading in our schools.
• What do you think they should have done?
• What do you think he should have done?
• Why did they do what they did?
Do not always agree with the author when he is writing in the Gazette but Jack Todd nailed it in this book. There are hints of Steinbeck and Shakespeare in the tale.
PS Would make a great screenplay for an animated tale.
“Powerful . . . Todd’s vivid language is perfectly suited to the epic sweep of his narrative.” ― Publishers Weekly, starred review of Rain Falls Like Mercy
Set in mythical Belle Coeur County in a time not too far from our own, Rose & Poe gloriously re-imagines Shakespeare’s The Tempest from the point of view of Caliban and his mother.
Rose and her giant, simple son, Poe, live quietly on the fringes of their town ― tending their goats and working at odd jobs. Prosper Thorne, banished from his big-city law practice and worrying about his fading memory, obsessively watches over his beloved daughter Miranda.
When Poe erupts from the forest one day carrying Miranda’s bruised and bloody body, he is arrested, despite his protestations of get help-get help-get help. Overnight, Rose and Poe find themselves pariahs in the county where they have lived all their lives. In the face of bitter hatred and threats from her neighbours, the implacable Rose devotes all her strength to proving Poe’s innocence and saving him from prison or worse.
Rose & Poe is a tale of a mother’s boundless love for an apparently unlovable child, and a stunning fable for our own troubled times. It will stick in your memory like sweet wild honey.
https://www.amazon.ca/Rose-Poe-Jack-T...
Notes and scribbling:
x. Rose and Poe were of the earth itself, formed of its clay, great souls adrift in a world that grows smaller by the day. This is their story.
7. A pasture that is smooth as a baby’s bottom in October will be dotted with stones come April snowmelt.
20. Airmail darts into the kitchen, returns with a Sam Adams for himself and one for Thorne.
79: All the bridges that lead out of the county are under water. The only way out is to cross the border into Canada.
108: ‘Well, poor Gerald is a good soul. Rose, but he isn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer. I can see where you might have your reservations about him.’
128: Rose: “I pity you, Reverend. I do. You have come a long way from the teachings of Jesus Christ but I’ll not sully your church again.”
180: It’s the clever liar who presents a neatly packaged narrative for our consumption, not the maladroit honest man who is incapable of concocting a meticulous lie.
225: The quality of mercy.
Rose forgives them all, without exception.
EN: A brave woman!
A wonderful tale: 5 stars!
#RoseAndPOE @JackTodd46
Jack Todd
2017
This volume is a wonderful tale of love, desire, family, community and goats.
Should be required reading in our schools.
• What do you think they should have done?
• What do you think he should have done?
• Why did they do what they did?
Do not always agree with the author when he is writing in the Gazette but Jack Todd nailed it in this book. There are hints of Steinbeck and Shakespeare in the tale.
PS Would make a great screenplay for an animated tale.
“Powerful . . . Todd’s vivid language is perfectly suited to the epic sweep of his narrative.” ― Publishers Weekly, starred review of Rain Falls Like Mercy
Set in mythical Belle Coeur County in a time not too far from our own, Rose & Poe gloriously re-imagines Shakespeare’s The Tempest from the point of view of Caliban and his mother.
Rose and her giant, simple son, Poe, live quietly on the fringes of their town ― tending their goats and working at odd jobs. Prosper Thorne, banished from his big-city law practice and worrying about his fading memory, obsessively watches over his beloved daughter Miranda.
When Poe erupts from the forest one day carrying Miranda’s bruised and bloody body, he is arrested, despite his protestations of get help-get help-get help. Overnight, Rose and Poe find themselves pariahs in the county where they have lived all their lives. In the face of bitter hatred and threats from her neighbours, the implacable Rose devotes all her strength to proving Poe’s innocence and saving him from prison or worse.
Rose & Poe is a tale of a mother’s boundless love for an apparently unlovable child, and a stunning fable for our own troubled times. It will stick in your memory like sweet wild honey.
https://www.amazon.ca/Rose-Poe-Jack-T...
Notes and scribbling:
x. Rose and Poe were of the earth itself, formed of its clay, great souls adrift in a world that grows smaller by the day. This is their story.
7. A pasture that is smooth as a baby’s bottom in October will be dotted with stones come April snowmelt.
20. Airmail darts into the kitchen, returns with a Sam Adams for himself and one for Thorne.
79: All the bridges that lead out of the county are under water. The only way out is to cross the border into Canada.
108: ‘Well, poor Gerald is a good soul. Rose, but he isn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer. I can see where you might have your reservations about him.’
128: Rose: “I pity you, Reverend. I do. You have come a long way from the teachings of Jesus Christ but I’ll not sully your church again.”
180: It’s the clever liar who presents a neatly packaged narrative for our consumption, not the maladroit honest man who is incapable of concocting a meticulous lie.
225: The quality of mercy.
Rose forgives them all, without exception.
EN: A brave woman!
A wonderful tale: 5 stars!
#RoseAndPOE @JackTodd46
February 18, 2018
Shakespearean plays focus exclusively on the nobility. Rustic, working class characters, if represented at all, were limited to the sidelines, basically acting as buffoons in the comedies. Author Jack Todd has opted to flip the script on “The Tempest” by moving Prospero (here known as Prosper Thorne) and the rest of the upper class characters to the margins, instead giving center stage to two possibly misunderstood characters - the sorceress Sycorax (aka Rose) and her monster son Caliban (Poe).
In this day and age, where audiences more and more are demanding diversity and equal representation, Todd makes the case that the problems of the common man are arguably more interesting, and certainly more relatable, than those of the one-percenters. After all, Caliban was a slave, so it’s safe to assume he and his mother were defined by those who were in control the narrative. So it might be high time we re-considered this nasty woman and her half-caste offspring. This story centers on Rose, a dirt poor, sexually liberated, plus-sized single mother, and her gentle son Poe, a simple giant, who together eke out a living selling goat’s milk and doing odd jobs in a small town in upstate New York.
Poe falls into unrequited love with Thorne’s beautiful daughter Miranda while building a stone wall around the retired lawyer’s property and is wrongfully accused of committing a violent crime against her. The townfolk automatically vilify him because of his mental disability and freakish appearance, but Rose fights to see him exonerated. While this is hardly a literal re-telling of “The Tempest,” anyone familiar with the original will recognize characters and plot points. Ariel has become Airmail, a courier and unofficial spy on a lightning fast Kawasaki Ninja. Stefano and Trinculo are Skeeter and Moe, two city boys attending a Fresh Air Fund type camp who spend their days following Poe’s enormous footprints, under the mistaken impression they’re on the trail of the mythical “Sasquank.” And of course, there’s a terrible storm that figures prominently in the dramatic action.
This is a vastly entertaining book. The characters are believable and full of life. The story is engaging and, at times, suspenseful. Even if you aren’t familiar with the Shakespeare, Rose & Poe stands on its own as a captivating and uplifting story of dignity, loyalty and a mother’s love.
In this day and age, where audiences more and more are demanding diversity and equal representation, Todd makes the case that the problems of the common man are arguably more interesting, and certainly more relatable, than those of the one-percenters. After all, Caliban was a slave, so it’s safe to assume he and his mother were defined by those who were in control the narrative. So it might be high time we re-considered this nasty woman and her half-caste offspring. This story centers on Rose, a dirt poor, sexually liberated, plus-sized single mother, and her gentle son Poe, a simple giant, who together eke out a living selling goat’s milk and doing odd jobs in a small town in upstate New York.
Poe falls into unrequited love with Thorne’s beautiful daughter Miranda while building a stone wall around the retired lawyer’s property and is wrongfully accused of committing a violent crime against her. The townfolk automatically vilify him because of his mental disability and freakish appearance, but Rose fights to see him exonerated. While this is hardly a literal re-telling of “The Tempest,” anyone familiar with the original will recognize characters and plot points. Ariel has become Airmail, a courier and unofficial spy on a lightning fast Kawasaki Ninja. Stefano and Trinculo are Skeeter and Moe, two city boys attending a Fresh Air Fund type camp who spend their days following Poe’s enormous footprints, under the mistaken impression they’re on the trail of the mythical “Sasquank.” And of course, there’s a terrible storm that figures prominently in the dramatic action.
This is a vastly entertaining book. The characters are believable and full of life. The story is engaging and, at times, suspenseful. Even if you aren’t familiar with the Shakespeare, Rose & Poe stands on its own as a captivating and uplifting story of dignity, loyalty and a mother’s love.
October 24, 2017
Poe and Rose are both engaging, round characters. Their history, through what felt like the 1960s and 70s, for the first half of the novel was fascinating. Unfortunately, every other character felt phony. Miranda seemed unreal, a tool for story progression, her conversations awkward and summarized. Thorne, her father, seemed unapproachable, unknowable, faded. And Miranda's boyfriend? Who? Several other characters, featured later in the story, were unwelcomed, and I was unwilling to commit to them.
The story idea was fascinating, the theme of compassion and love, mother to son, was explored with an effective, beautiful rawness, but the "Tempest" drama, which comes late in the story, of Poe wrongly accused of assault and the ensuing court case, was all quite stilted and skim-worthy only.
The story idea was fascinating, the theme of compassion and love, mother to son, was explored with an effective, beautiful rawness, but the "Tempest" drama, which comes late in the story, of Poe wrongly accused of assault and the ensuing court case, was all quite stilted and skim-worthy only.
May 17, 2022
Thanks to ECW Press for the advanced copy in exchange for a review!
I'm not going to lie, I don't often put down a book. I've tried to read this book but I simply cannot do it! The pacing was slow, the characters uninteresting, and the premise entirely lacking. I've read The Tempest and really enjoyed it. I was expecting to at least find something to spark my interest with this but it sadly never materialized.
I feel bad for saying these things but I was asked for an honest review, so here it is. I cannot and will not recommend this book to anyone. Go read Shakespeare's classic. It will be much more enjoyable and, unlike with this book, you will not regret the time you spent reading it.
I'm not going to lie, I don't often put down a book. I've tried to read this book but I simply cannot do it! The pacing was slow, the characters uninteresting, and the premise entirely lacking. I've read The Tempest and really enjoyed it. I was expecting to at least find something to spark my interest with this but it sadly never materialized.
I feel bad for saying these things but I was asked for an honest review, so here it is. I cannot and will not recommend this book to anyone. Go read Shakespeare's classic. It will be much more enjoyable and, unlike with this book, you will not regret the time you spent reading it.
July 1, 2018
This was a sweet, timeless fable with exquisitely written characters. It was somehow a mix between To Kill A Mockingbird and Tom Sawyer and the balance it struck was incredible. With unorthodox Poe at the forefront, nestled in small-town Belle Coeur County, this story will reel you in from the very beginning and I highly recommend it!
July 23, 2018
Jack Todd's retelling of William Shakespeare's The Tempest sounded intriguing. However, from the beginning, it did not work for me; I found it quite difficult to get into, and rather overwritten too. I liked the idea, but not so much its execution.
March 18, 2020
This is very likely the best book I will read in 2020. It is about a mother and her special needs son, how they are both bullied and ostracized, and what is the outcome. This is a very paltry description of an excellent book. In addition, I went to school with the author.
January 21, 2018
REVIEW FORTHCOMING
July 23, 2018
3.5 stars ⭐️
March 27, 2020
Not typically the type of fiction I go in for, but once I realized it was an adaptation/retelling of The Tempest, I was curious enough to try.
Pretty solid overall.
Pretty solid overall.
April 4, 2018
If you've read Shakespeare's The Tempest, this may be a familiar story to you, but if not, imagine a Grimm fairy tale crossed with a contemporary crime novel, and you have Todd's beautifully written tale, Rose & Poe.
At first, we're introduced to Rose, the single and fiercely devoted mother of Poe, the simple minded, gentle giant who works hard to please others- especially Miranda, the lovely daughter of Thorne. Then we're introduced to a series of other characters from the small fictional setting of Belle Coeur County (set in New England), including Thorne (aka Mister Sir Mister), a possessive father who is slowly losing his mind to dementia; Airmail, the skeezy speedster courier who has his nose in everybody's business: and Skeeter and Moe, two young boys who think they are tracking Sasquatch (aka Sasquank).
Each character's individual stories develop and become intertwined with Poe. Though he lives a rather sheltered life, everyone in the area knows who he is. He's kind of hard to miss, being somewhere between eight and nine feet tall and seven hundred pounds, six fingered and six toed, with a size eighteen shoe and signature Oshkosh'b'Gosh overalls. Though simple minded, he's been raised in the small town by a loving mother and taught to be a kind, hard working citizen. Yet, many don't accept his social limitations and therefore ostracize him, and though his mother has protected him from as much as possible, there are still experiences that Poe suffered through just because he was different. With no one willing to defend him, Rose has always come to his rescue.
The one night, Rose's worst nightmare happens- Poe gets into a situation that Rose can't get him out of. She knows he is innocent and wouldn't harm a fly, but with little evidence to prove otherwise, Poe is in serious danger of being committed for a serious crime. Even with Rose doing all she can from him, nobody is willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, and being a pariah already, they don't care to wait for the trial to have Poe hanged. Todd keeps his readers at the edge of their seat awaiting the final word on Poe's predicament.
I actually got this novel from an Instagram giveaway from Megan at whatmeganreads and ecwpress.com. I probably wouldn't have picked it out for myself, but Megan loved it, posted a rave review, and since we have similar tastes in books, I thought why not see if I could win a copy! I was pretty surprised, but super excited, and that I won it because it is such a great book. Also, I was surprised to see many Vermont references, including the county that I grew up in! Small world, coincidence, or fate that I should end up with this book? Who knows. Anyways... there's no sugar coating in Rose & Poe, so the reader becomes very empathetic to the main duo. Todd builds this honest and fierce relationship between the characters and reader from the start, and it's hard not to become involved in the novel. I, too, give it a seal of approval, and suggest you give it a shot- you won't be disappointed.
At first, we're introduced to Rose, the single and fiercely devoted mother of Poe, the simple minded, gentle giant who works hard to please others- especially Miranda, the lovely daughter of Thorne. Then we're introduced to a series of other characters from the small fictional setting of Belle Coeur County (set in New England), including Thorne (aka Mister Sir Mister), a possessive father who is slowly losing his mind to dementia; Airmail, the skeezy speedster courier who has his nose in everybody's business: and Skeeter and Moe, two young boys who think they are tracking Sasquatch (aka Sasquank).
Each character's individual stories develop and become intertwined with Poe. Though he lives a rather sheltered life, everyone in the area knows who he is. He's kind of hard to miss, being somewhere between eight and nine feet tall and seven hundred pounds, six fingered and six toed, with a size eighteen shoe and signature Oshkosh'b'Gosh overalls. Though simple minded, he's been raised in the small town by a loving mother and taught to be a kind, hard working citizen. Yet, many don't accept his social limitations and therefore ostracize him, and though his mother has protected him from as much as possible, there are still experiences that Poe suffered through just because he was different. With no one willing to defend him, Rose has always come to his rescue.
The one night, Rose's worst nightmare happens- Poe gets into a situation that Rose can't get him out of. She knows he is innocent and wouldn't harm a fly, but with little evidence to prove otherwise, Poe is in serious danger of being committed for a serious crime. Even with Rose doing all she can from him, nobody is willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, and being a pariah already, they don't care to wait for the trial to have Poe hanged. Todd keeps his readers at the edge of their seat awaiting the final word on Poe's predicament.
I actually got this novel from an Instagram giveaway from Megan at whatmeganreads and ecwpress.com. I probably wouldn't have picked it out for myself, but Megan loved it, posted a rave review, and since we have similar tastes in books, I thought why not see if I could win a copy! I was pretty surprised, but super excited, and that I won it because it is such a great book. Also, I was surprised to see many Vermont references, including the county that I grew up in! Small world, coincidence, or fate that I should end up with this book? Who knows. Anyways... there's no sugar coating in Rose & Poe, so the reader becomes very empathetic to the main duo. Todd builds this honest and fierce relationship between the characters and reader from the start, and it's hard not to become involved in the novel. I, too, give it a seal of approval, and suggest you give it a shot- you won't be disappointed.
April 4, 2017
Netgalley copy in exchange for an honest review.
As a lover of The Tempest, I found this book to be absolutely fascinating and original.
As a lover of The Tempest, I found this book to be absolutely fascinating and original.
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