Herbert Rowbarge

I am a 35-year old woman who read this book, I believe, when I was in the 6th grade. I have carried its powerful and moving story with me since then. The randomness of the choice which charts such divergent paths for the twin boys in this book and the impact of having a warm, nurturning and loving childhood have echoed in mind over the past 20 years. I honestly think that the underlying message in this book have played a significant role in who I am and what I do today. I can't offer a detailed review of this book right now because I have not read it since I was a child but, like Bridge to Teribithia, this is one book that I am extremely eager to digest again as an adult.

While checking the shelving of our library's fiction pit, I came across this curious Babbitt title from 1982. Looking quite new and seldom read, I put it with the stack of other titles that I knew I must read. Thus I discovered the magically tragic little saga of orphaned twins, especially the one who would grow to self-made success despite the haunting background of leaving his other self behind. He, Herbert Rowbarge, is the unchosen twin for whom life seems quite bleak. And yet by ruthless self determination, he rises to power and wealth through a business world which, of all things, reaps riches from a fantasy world theme park. His is a determined and cold mien. He loses the love he really wants and takes a rich second best; he closes his heart to both his wife and twin daughters. He attempts to destroy those who reject him, as well as those who loyally serve him, as he controls the world that has offered him little warmth and comfort. He is respected and wealthy, and the recipient of his daughters' solicitude. No one seems to know his dark secrets. The twists that Babbitt employs in Herbert Rowbarge are certainly more adult than her children's titles, but typical of her style with its twist at the end. Reading Herbert Rowbarge is a curious trip with an unforgettable result. I'd like to see a renewed interest in this O.Henry like little tome. Good reading!