The Original Knickerbocker: The Life of Washington Irving

This biography is readable, scholarly, and often engrossing. The author skillfully blends story with literary analysis. During the first third of the book I found my interest at times waning, but it was well worth "staying with it" because the story became more engaging as Irving matured as a human being and as a writer. Two of Burstein's most significant skills are his ability to summarize and his facility in giving insights into Irving's numerous works, while at the same time maintaining the flow of an interesting life-story. The first example is from Burstein's summary of The Legend of Sleepy Hallow and the second from his commentary on the Sketch Book: Despite his [Ichabod Crane's] fears, he cannot resist staying into the night with the women he instructs in psalmody. For among them is one Katrina Van Tassel, the somewhat coquettish daughter of the self-sufficient, ordinarily undemonstrative but altogether thriving Baltus Van Tassel, who relishes his "snug" life "on the banks of the Hudson, in one of those green, sheltered, fertile nooks, in which the Dutch farmers are so found of nestling." Yet much of what he wrote was also a lamentation. He fixated on the intertwined subjects of death and memory. We may say without exaggeration that the bachelor Irving knew loneliness and feared darkness. He reveled in the company of others, which he knew brought him back and animated him. In the Sketch Book, he wrote THROUGH death and wrote OF awakenings. I would particularly recommend this book for anyone interested in becoming a writer. The book itself is an excellent example of fine non-fiction writing, and the many direct quotes given from Irving's prolific production of both fiction and non-fiction works are instructive. Here, for example, is what Irving wrote in his biography of Oliver Goldsmith: "There are few writers for whom the reader feels such personal kindness as for Oliver Goldsmith. We read his character in every page, and grow into familiar intimacy with him as we read." Irving admired Goldsmith because of his "artless benevolence" and "whimsical, yet amiable views of life." Burstein writes, "It was, for Irving, a matter of seeing literature as a communion of author and reader." Finally, I recommend buying a copy of the hardcover edition. The dust cover containing the opening of The Legend of Sleepy Hallow is impressive.

This is a unique book that blends literary analysis, history, and biography of the life of one of American literature's legendary authors, Washington Irving. Andrew Burstein examines a bulk of Irving's most renowned works, the picaresque The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Rip Van Winkle, A History of New York, and Life and Voyages of Columbus as well as several other short stories that have graced the pages of literature anthologies. But Irving was also a man of many facets as the subtitle of the book reveals, a diplomat, historian, and writer who hobnobbed with creative imagination as it related to the colonial and revolutionary historical past. The only disconcerting aspect of the book is how Burstein excessively delves into the crevices of Irving's works within the first two sections. And as a result, one may almost forget what the book is about or wonder if the book is supposed to be about Irving or more about the synopsis of his stories; the passages may be helpful for readers not familiar with his works. However, interesting questions arise pertaining to Irving's own personal life outside his writings, such as his religious conversion and beliefs, the issue of slavery in Britain and America, the mysticism surrounding Matilda Hoffman and his sexuality, why did he live a transatlantic life, his romance with Spain, and his use of pseudonyms, Geoffrey, Crayon, Diedrich Knickerbocker and Jonathan Oldstyle, that are in need of further explanation. Nonetheless, the insightful part about the book is when Burstein discusses the man who used pseudonyms during the early part of his writing care but later shed the anonymity with the publication of his biography about Christopher Columbus. And most importantly, Irving was one of the most animated travel writers who trekked west with Henry Ellsworth, son of Federalist delegate to the Constitutional Convention, Oliver Ellsworth, during one of the most historic events in American history that involved Indian territory west of the Mississippi River, which involved Indian Removal, Ellsworth-Irving Expedition. Irving vividly described and witnessed the changing American landscape within his stories that compared and paralleled the history of Indian America and White America, which Burstein discusses in the chapter, "A Tour on the Prairies." It was amazing to read of the various people Irving encountered and befriended during his lifetime, such as Sac Tribe Chief, Black Hawk, Andrew Jackson, James Fenimore Cooper, Lord Byron, Charles Dickens, and long list of others. Overall, The Original Knickerbocker is an enlightening read. The book may appeal to those who are familiar with Washington Irving's most beloved tales and would like to know about the man behind the stories as well as those who are simply curious about this multifaceted man who was indeed a part of the landscape in which he wrote about.

Any public library strong in biography or school library strong in literature surrounding Washington Irving will find THE ORIGINAL KNICKERBOCKER a 'must have' acquisition: Irving was author, ambassador and an international icon whose legacy lasts into today and set many trends beyond his literary legacy. THE ORIGINAL KNICKERBOCKER traces all his achievements, adding background history of his times to help emphasize his life and importance. It's a lively yet scholarly presentation perfect for all kinds of collections.