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Novalyne Price first met Bob Howard in the late spring of 1933, at her farm in Brownwood, Texas, where they were introduced by a mutual friend, Clyde Smith. Clyde knew that Novalyne, just out of college and an aspiring writer, wanted to meet him-- a real writer who actually made his living doing what he loved. It was a brief visit, and Novalyne would not see Bob again until the fall of 1934, when she landed a job teaching drama and speech at the local High School in the small town of Cross Plains, not too far from her family farm in Brownwood. She was happy to have the job, times being what they were, but she was even more thrilled because Cross Plains was where Bob Howard lived with his parents. And once she had settled in at the Hemphill's boarding house that would be her home during the school year, she took the initiative and contacted Bob. It was the beginning of a close and sometimes stormy relationship, during which Novalyne got as close to Bob as any woman could possibly get. Because there was an obstacle in Bob's life that was nearly insurmountable-- as Novalyne would soon discover.
Robert E. Howard was a big man; six feet, two hundred pounds. But he was "different" than most men, in that he had few friends and led a predominantly solitary existence. He was an outsider who had trouble negotiating the simple aspects of day-to-day living, especially when it came to the social amenities, but most significantly, there was that obstacle: His mother. By 1934, Mrs. Howard was in poor health, and inexplicably, Bob somehow felt that it fell to him to take care of her, to nurse her and see to her every need, even though his father was a doctor, with a practice right there in Cross Plains. It was something that Novalyne could never understand. One explanation is that it was because Mrs. Howard was the only person who ever encouraged Bob to write, and who stood by him in his endeavors unconditionally. Which was no small thing in this time and place. Bob was a victim of a small town mentality that held that a man should have a "real" job, earning his living by the sweat of his brow. And sitting at a typewriter was no job for a "real" man. Bob would say he didn't care about what people said about him or thought-- but, of course, he did; and Novalyne knew it. She also knew that between his mother and his environment, Bob Howard had encountered demons he could neither control nor dispel.
This account is taken from the journals Novalyne kept during the all too brief time she had with Bob (a period just short of two years), and what emerges is a tragic portrait of a young man-- vital and filled with life, intelligent, with so much to offer the world and with so much to live for-- who instead lived a tormented existence and suffered needlessly. He was a man who loved history and longed to travel and discover adventure in the real world. But he never had the chance. He was endowed with a sensitivity-- a gentle, poetic nature which his physical appearance belied-- that kept him out of step with his environment. He was a man born in the wrong century, and decidedly in the wrong part of the world. His sensibilities were more conducive to a larger, more vibrant local, like New York City or any of the larger cities of Europe; places in which he would have been accepted and appreciated for who and what he was, where he and his writing could have thrived. But it was not to be; and at the age of thirty, Robert E. Howard died, right there in Cross Plains, Texas.
Novalyne Price held on to her journals for many years, hoping to someday put Bob's story-- which is her story, as well-- down for posterity. Finally, after retiring from a long and satisfying career as a teacher, she did just that, and "One Who Walked Alone" is the result. First published in 1986 (and made into an outstanding film, "The Whole Wide World," in 1996), not only is it a wonderful, moving and heartfelt story, well written and presented, but the kind of first hand account that is extremely rare; an account that puts you in the car with Bob and Novalyne during their many long drives through the Texas countryside, when Bob would "shoot his mouth off" and offer his "best girl" a beautiful sunset while they spoke of writing, religion, politics, our "rotting civilization" and just about everything else. And, reading this book, one can be thankful that she kept those journals. Because this book-- the story of Robert E. Howard's final years-- was definitely worth the wait.
If I would have looked at the book from an unbiased, outside perspective (before viewing the movie), I would naievly have said that I didn't think I would be interested in it. I did not know who Robert E. Howard was before seeing the movie. Sure, I was familiar with Conan, but it had never peaked my interest, certainly not enough to read a novel based on the author's life.
Having said that, I NOW would say that this novel can be read and appreciated by any type of person. While for obvious reasons it would be interesting to Robert E. Howard literature fans, I believe it also would be extremely comforting to those who have lost a close companion to suicide, as well as enlightening to those who are judgmental at times.
True, the novel is mostly dialogue and thus may seem rather monotonous, but I beg to differ. I could not put this book down. It captured my interest and my heart immediately. In my opinion, Novalyne Price Ellis finally achieved her goal of becoming a successful writer. She certainly won me over. I applaud both her writing skills and her beautiful life story.
ACROSS ERAS, ACROSS ORIGINS, ACROSS FAITHS.
WITHOUT YOUR EVER KNOWING HOW. Read more
