Marinne's Critique

         Overall, I would give The Man Who Was Poe 3 out of 5 stars. In my opinion, what made the book the best was the extravagant imagery used that captured the story's scenes so vividly. I also enjoyed the topic, which was a mix of mystery, death, and the past. For this reason,it kept me reading at a steady pace.  There were some great aspects of The Man Who Was Poe, but I increasingly found negatives as I went through the book. A major setback was that the plot revolving the mystery was dragged out, and then crammed in after the climax. I didn't like this because I was bored through most of it, then overwhelmed as I neared the finish line of the book. Also, Poe's selfish and lazy attitude left me confused as to whether he was a protagonist or antagonist. Although I can understand why Poe's past would make him this way, I still wish Avi would've made it clear whether Poe was a character that helped for the good of Edmund, or just for himself and his career. However, because I adore Avi's descriptive style, I might consider reading another of his books that doesn't have to deal with so much mystery. All in all, I think The Man Who Was Poe was a decent one-time read, but it definitely wasn't my favorite, and I wouldn't recommend it to just anyone.