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A review by sil_a
A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway
5.0
One question I had as I listened to the audio version of this book read by James Naughton -- which I thought was a great interpretation, and sounded as I would imagine Hemingway would like it to, no frills, direct, firm -- anyhow, the question I had was, how can a 25 year old be so mature and already have such a deliberate clear voice? I found two answers to this question: 1. The observations and reflections recorded here do not come from any 25 year old. They come from an exceptional young writer who is dedicating everything to his craft. At the time of the events, Hemingway was already a published author of stories and journalistic content. At one point in the book he is in the process of revising the manuscript for The Sun Also Rises, so he was already a mature writer in a sense. 2.Even though the text is based on the notes from a young writer living in Paris in the 20s, the actual book was written and revised by the old version of that young writer, Papa Hemingway in the 1950s, already living in Cuba at the time -- a memoir.
The story of how this book came about is a gem in its own. Old Hemingway was eating with Charles Ritz at the Paris Ritz when the hotelier mentioned a trunk stored in the hotel's basement. It turns out that the trunk had been made by Louis Vuitton for Hemmingway in the 1920s and had been stored since then. The trunk was filled with personal items, including skiing equipment, horse racing forms, clothes and...the notebooks containing the writings of the young 25 year old living in Paris. That's what makes this book so special. It carries the youthful vigor of young Hemingway and in a way his innocence at the time, but also the sure editorial hand of the old Hemingway. I listened and read the official Mary Hemingway version, edited by Ernest's fourth wife after his death. Some criticize her for removing his apology to his first wife Hadley, which is reinserted in the restored 2009 version published by his grandson, who, in turn, is criticized for removing negative remarks about his grandmother, Hemingway's second wife. I guess one can't win here.
In any case, Ernest's tenderness towards his first wife Hadley, the one before riches and fame, is clear, even in the Mary Hemingway version. "I wished I had died before I loved anyone but her," sounds pretty strong to me. The book is a beautiful window into post WWI Paris with Hemingway's vivid descriptions of legendary characters such as Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda, James Joyce and many others. Woody Allen used it as a reference for his Midnight in Paris movie. The book's title is mentioned twice in the film.
Great stuff, a must for writers and literature lovers, and for anyone who enjoys the arts, reading memoirs and such.
The story of how this book came about is a gem in its own. Old Hemingway was eating with Charles Ritz at the Paris Ritz when the hotelier mentioned a trunk stored in the hotel's basement. It turns out that the trunk had been made by Louis Vuitton for Hemmingway in the 1920s and had been stored since then. The trunk was filled with personal items, including skiing equipment, horse racing forms, clothes and...the notebooks containing the writings of the young 25 year old living in Paris. That's what makes this book so special. It carries the youthful vigor of young Hemingway and in a way his innocence at the time, but also the sure editorial hand of the old Hemingway. I listened and read the official Mary Hemingway version, edited by Ernest's fourth wife after his death. Some criticize her for removing his apology to his first wife Hadley, which is reinserted in the restored 2009 version published by his grandson, who, in turn, is criticized for removing negative remarks about his grandmother, Hemingway's second wife. I guess one can't win here.
In any case, Ernest's tenderness towards his first wife Hadley, the one before riches and fame, is clear, even in the Mary Hemingway version. "I wished I had died before I loved anyone but her," sounds pretty strong to me. The book is a beautiful window into post WWI Paris with Hemingway's vivid descriptions of legendary characters such as Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda, James Joyce and many others. Woody Allen used it as a reference for his Midnight in Paris movie. The book's title is mentioned twice in the film.
Great stuff, a must for writers and literature lovers, and for anyone who enjoys the arts, reading memoirs and such.