Malbone: An Oldport Romance

by Thomas Wentworth Higginson

PHILIP MALBONE had that perfectly sunny temperament which is peculiarly captivating among Americans, because it is so rare. He liked everybody and everybody liked him; he had a thousand ways of affording pleasure, and he received it in the giving. He had a personal beauty, which, strange to say, was recognized by both sexes,--for handsome men must often consent to be mildly hated by their own. He had travelled much, and had mingled in very varied society; he had a moderate fortune, no vices, no ambition, and no capacity of ennui.

Genres: Classics

124 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1869

About the author

American writer and soldier Higginson, Thomas Wentworth Storrow led the first black regiment in the Army of the Union from 1862 to 1864; he wrote many biographies, including volumes on Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and John Greenleaf Whittier in 1902, and he edited the poetry of Emily Dickinson.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_...

Reviews

[Craig Masten · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came across, Malbone, a novel by Thomas Wentworth Higginson, in a book about the poet Emily Dickinson. He had been a close friend and inspiration to Emily, and publisher of a few of her poems. Reclusive those she was, he met her on a couple of occasions, and supposedly Emilia, one of the female characters in the book, was based on the poet. From what I know of the life of Emily Dickinson, I don’t see much of a resemblance, except perhaps in physical appearance and mannerisms, of which he had first hand knowledge. The short novel is, however, full of interesting description, with amusing and sometimes profound characterizations. The overall plot is slight, and suffers from a rather maudlin romantic ending with and implausible twist.