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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
Loved this book. It was written with such simplicity and straightforwardness. It makes me want to read more Hemingway and learn more about his wives.
I took a while to warm up to this book. The farther into the story, the more I was drawn to the story. Despite knowing the ending for Hadley and Ernest, the final chapters made me incredibly sad.
This story, from the perspective of Ernest Hemingway's first wife, is a wonderful window into the life of the "lost generation" in Paris. "We called Paris the great good place, then, ant it was. We invented it after all...Together we made everything and then we bisted it apart again."
While at uni I tried to avoid Hemingway as much as possible, though I distinctly remember at least two exams that had his work as subject. I strongly relied on [b:The Sun Also Rises|3876|The Sun Also Rises|Ernest Hemingway|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1165367268s/3876.jpg|589497] and [b:A Farewell to Arms|10799|A Farewell to Arms|Ernest Hemingway|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1313714836s/10799.jpg|4652599] and some short stories I had read in high school. Later, I tried (and finished!) the never ending [b:For Whom the Bell Tolls|46170|For Whom the Bell Tolls|Ernest Hemingway|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1298424632s/46170.jpg|2252079] because my husband mentioned he liked it very much. The guy always seemed too macho, too big, too magnetic, larger than life, in love with masculine things I have no connection with. He still does. But I came to like him while reading [b:A Moveable Feast|4631|A Moveable Feast|Ernest Hemingway|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41B112Q45HL._SL75_.jpg|2459084] which is a must for any 20s aficionado. Oh, and have you noticed how cute the actor that played him in Woody's Midnight in Paris is?
I started this faux memoir determined not to like it, because I'm sort of against historical fiction. The audacity of relying on something that happened at some point in history, place some characters in the scene and call it your work! However, after a while I started to get interested because, truth be told, McLain did her homework well and added just as much spark as was needed to keep the reader interested, though we could have been spared that tearjerking ending, don't you think? All in all I'm not sure the book is about Hadley, but Hem and him alone, young, Parisian and troubled.
I started this faux memoir determined not to like it, because I'm sort of against historical fiction. The audacity of relying on something that happened at some point in history, place some characters in the scene and call it your work! However, after a while I started to get interested because, truth be told, McLain did her homework well and added just as much spark as was needed to keep the reader interested, though we could have been spared that tearjerking ending, don't you think? All in all I'm not sure the book is about Hadley, but Hem and him alone, young, Parisian and troubled.
I really enjoyed this book. At first it was hard to believe it was a novel and not a memoir. I got caught up in the story of Hadley and the happenings of the time. I've read quite a bit of Hemingway but not The Moveable Feast, i will add that to my list of to-be-read
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was a lovely and frequently sad book. Made me so interested in reading a holistic biography of Hemingway.
Note/Update: A lot of this came from Hemingway's A Moveable Feast.
Note/Update: A lot of this came from Hemingway's A Moveable Feast.
The really interesting components of how Hemmingway's style came about did not make up for lack of plot and, the fatal flaw in a book (to me), lack of a sympathetic protagonist.
Hemingway and his lovable first wife Hadley - hard drinking, fast living, hobnobbing with who's who among authors and artists - living in France, traveling to Spain for inspiration. Well told.
Really enjoyed reading the other side of the Paris Years. Well written and researched