The Flame Tree: Florida in the Fabulous Days of the Royal Poinciana Hotel

by Theodore Pratt

No chapter in the story of America is more colorful than the opening up of Florida about the turn of the century. And no one is better qualified to picture the pioneering of the romantic part of the country in authentic fiction than Theordore Pratt, whose earlier novel The Barefoot Mailman is recognized as a Florida classic, having sold nearly half a million copies in all editions.

The Flame Tree is a tale of the people who built a luxurious playground out of the isolated settlement called Palm Beach. To this wild frontier, Tip Totten, one of the first white hunters to roam the mysterious tropical Everglades, brings his bride, Jenny. Their home is a small thatch palm "cabbage hut"; their proudest possession the royal poinciana or Flame Tree that blooms brilliantly outside. It is from the tree that the Fabulous Royal Poinciana Hotel, built by Flagler to lure the wealthy from all over the earth, takes its name.

With the completion of the "Ponce," there exist side by side two worlds of striking contrast, one characterized by extravagant luxury, the other by the duress of pioneer life. Jenny Totten comes to know each of these worlds and is forced ultimately to make a choice between them and between the two men by whom they are personified for her.

280 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1994

About the author

Theodore Pratt (1901 - 1969) was an American writer who is best known for his novels set in Florida. He was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1901 to Thomas A. and Emma Pratt. The family later moved to New Rochelle, New York, where Theodore attended high school. After completing high school, he attended Colgate University for two years, and then Columbia University for another two years, but did not graduate. He worked in New York City as a play reader, a staff reader for a movie company, and a columnist for the New York Sun. He also free-lanced articles for The New Yorker and other national magazines.

Theodore Pratt published more than thirty novels, including four mysteries under the pseudonym of "[author=Timothy Brace|21712110]", two collections of short stories, two plays (adapted from his novels), a few non-fiction books and pamphlets, and numerous short stories and articles in periodicals such as Esquire, Blue Book, Escapade, The Gent, Manhunt, Guilty Detective Story Magazine, Coronet, Fantastic Universe, Space Science Fiction, and The Saturday Evening Post. Some of his novels had strong sexual content by the standards of the time. The Tormented (1950), a study of nymphomania, was turned down by thirty-four publishers. It eventually sold more than a million copies. Five of his works were made into feature motion pictures.

Reviews

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Theodore Pratt does it again! This sequel of sorts follows his first book “The Barefoot Mailman”, where a young, married couple named Tip and Jenny Totten decide to move to the sparse and undeveloped town of West Palm Beach, FL to start their new life together. Little do they know that soon, their little paradise will change dramatically. The Flame Tree is in actuality the Royal Poinciana Tree which is native to South Florida. When it’s in season, the fiery explosion of orange colored flowers bloom from the tree and gives the surrounding environment beauty. The tree will come to symbolize the growth and maturity of Jenny, the protagonist. Pratt has a way of conveying the imagery of the time period, events and people who made an impact in his stories and makes them come alive. I liked how the Royal Poinciana Hotel also known as the “Ponce” became a symbol of how progress and development of a region sometimes spells doom to the original inhabitants of a particular place. This novel is filled with emotion and you will understand those feelings being expressed by Jenny and Tip. I highly recommend this book. It shows Palm Beach in all its glory and the changes this city has experienced.

[Pat Stanford · Rating 5 out of 5]

How this one got past me is a mystery. I lived in Delray Beach when Pratt was still alive and had read The Barefoot Mailman. This is a well woven story of early Palm Beach.

[Lynette Lark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was in the Florida Keys a week ago and saw the flame trees and they are beautiful.

[Debbie Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liked that I could picture my hometown back in its infancy.

[Arlene Shulman/Lichtman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it and can’t wait to read his other books. Been living in Florida for three years and enjoy learning its history.

[Rob Smith, Jr. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a tale more interesting in the story of developer Henry Flagler and his Royal Poinciana, than of the two main characters. The story is simple with lush details of early Palm Beach County, Florida.

Pratt continues laying our Florida history and Palm beach County with this story of a couple from Ohio who finds themselves trying to live life as one of the greatest architectural wonders of the world, the Royal Poinciana hotel, comes about. The story of the relationship and all of the troubles with it are a bit bland. Most interesting is the female's obsession with the hotel. The obsession paves the way for Pratt to fully describe the hotel and it's workings.

An oddity is other construction Flagler does in the area as the story takes place, like the Palm Inn and his home, Whitehall. Not a mention in the book. I guess it helped Pratt's focus.

The characters are pretty standard for a story like this. Mostly well written, with simpler sketches of everybody else - Unless it involves the hotel.

I'd suggest the book for those interested in planning or the history of Palm Beach County. All others will find a weak story draped with way too much about everything else.

Bottom line: I recommend it with conditions above. 5 out of ten points.