The Paris Wife by Paula McLain
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I’ll admit it. I’ve never read anything by Hemingway, though I’ve quoted him (“The first draft of anything is sh*t”), knew he was much revered as an author, that he committed suicide, and that he had a bunch of cats.
The Paris Wife is before all of that, and the voice of Hadley, his first wife, rings true and clear as the narrator of this utterly compelling novel that tackles Hemingway’s early years. I could feel his bigger-than-life presence, his penchant for drinking too much, for taking in every high and low as if every moment mattered—and needed to be captured, even if it meant hurting the ones he loved, or the ones who loved (and helped) him along the way.
We leave this novel, as a reader, understanding “Tatie,” aka “Papa.” Maybe not liking him, entirely, but accepting who he was in a time of decadence and debaucherie, and along the way we get to meet F. Scott Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald’s wife, Zelda, and many other notables of the time. It’s a lifestyle that I can’t begin to imagine and yet McLain makes it accessible through passionate prose and artful description. Her research and attention to detail is to be applauded.
Better still, I wanted to keep reading well beyond the end. 5 Solid Stars.
GOODREADS RATING SYSTEM:
5: It was amazing
4: really liked it
3: liked it
2: It was okay
1: didn’t like it
This sounds like a very interesting book. I’m happy to hear about this book. Plus, I love the title.
Really good and I think if you’d read The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway you’d get even more out of it. I plan to do so. She’s also written Circling the Sun, supposed to be excellent. On my list.
I loved this book. I will check out the Burns series too. Thanks for posting this, Judy.
I will post when I have details of my interview with her –w/b on Zoom!
Judy, Very timely post (and book). Just saw the Ken Burns series on television about Hemingway. He was quite the figure. Look forward to reading the novel. Thank you.
I PVR’d the PBS — must watch it! I’m going to be the moderator for a Paula McLain interview in May — she’s just released a mystery/suspense — so I thought I better read the book that made her famous. Have not yet read the mystery (when the stars go dark).