Paris Wife by Paula McLain

I don't know much about Ernest Hemingway and even less about any of his wives.  Perhaps that's just as well as with some authors their reputation precedes them, and when the reputation isn't always a particularly favorable one the less said the better, it seems.  My perspective has shifted ever so slightly since I finished reading Paula McLain's very excellent Paris Wife, which is a fictional biography of sorts about Hemingway's first wife Hadley Richardson and their life together in 1920s Paris.  I had little knowledge and few expectations going into this book, so perhaps this has helped in forming my opinions.  I still don't know a lot about either Ernest or Hadley, though it seems as though McLain tried to paint an accurate portrait of both individuals.  I don't think she glosses over their behavior or shortcomings yet she doesn't exactly condemn their actions either.  It seems as though she tries to simply present the facts of their lives paying special attention to what they might have been feeling emotionally during their short marriage.

Hadley Richardson was a very average young American woman when she met Ernest.  She had a fairly conventional upbringing in St. Louis, though her mother was very protective of her after a childhood accident.  She met Ernest when she was visiting a friend in Chicago.  Several years her junior, Ernest was full of life and energy and Hadley felt an immediate attraction.  Hemingway had served in Italy during WWI as an ambulance driver but was injured and invalided out.  He was working as a reporter when he met Hadley and the two corresponded after her return home.  Despite concerns of family members they married a year later in 1921, living for a while in Chicago and then moving to Paris at the suggestion of Hemingway's mentor Sherwood Anderson.

I think Hadley must have been Hemingway's muse.  She was immensely supportive of his work and didn't shy away from trying anything he had an interest in.  The two became part of the expatriate community that included Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Joyce and Ezra Pound.  Other than his journalistic work he hadn't been published and was struggling to find his own voice.  He would write during the day--sometimes taking a separate room away from his and Hadley's apartment or writing at cafés where he could chat with other writers and artists.  If Hadley's upbringing was fairly conventional her lifestyle in Paris was not.  The 20s was about youth culture and shaking off   the past, which had been darkened with the bloodshed of WWI.  Hemingway was not the only writer    looking for a new language to express how the world had changed.  In a letter to Hemingway before their marriage Hadley wrote "The world's a jail and we're going to break it together."  But Paris wasn't everything Hadley expected it to be.  She took care of their home all day and while she missed Ernest, it didn't seem that he missed her.  He was part of the creative sphere of Paris and she was not.

By all appearances Ernest and Hadley had a very typical middle class marriage but they were just about the only ones of their group to do so.  Marriage and family life were considered bourgeoisie and most of their friends were either unfaithful or didn't believe in having children.  People drank hard and played even harder, so it's not surprising that staying happily married in such an environment would be a challenge.  They moved to Toronto when Hadley was ready to give birth to their son, John, but it was stifling for Ernest who didn't seem to be cut out for domesticity.  As soon as the baby was old enough to travel they sailed once again for France.  Whatever happiness they initially had seemed to erode away in the Parisian milieu of the 1920s. 

"If Ernest was changing, Montparnasse was, too.  American tourists flooded the scene hoping to get a glimpse of a real bohemian while the usual suspects grew wilder and stranger for the new audience.  Kiki was one of the most famous artist's models around, and May Ray's lover and muse.  She could often be seen at the Dôme or Rotonde with her pet mouse.  It was small and white, and she wore it attached to her wrist with a delicate silver chain.  The fleshy redhead Flossie Martin held court in front of the Select shouting obscenities to locals and tourists alike.  Bob McAlmon vomited neatly in the flowerbeds of all the best cafés and then ordered another absinthe.  That absinthe was illegal deterred no one, and the same held true for opium and cocaine.  Ernest and I had always been more than happy enough with alcohol, but there was the very real feeling, for many, of needing to up the ante--to feel more and risk more.  It grew harder and harder to shock anyone."

It can be really painful reading about the disintegration of a marriage.  As supportive of Ernest as Hadley was she couldn't be a critic, but there would be others who could talk about literature in a way that she couldn't.  Their ongoing joke was that she liked Henry James, an author Hemingway saw as mired in the past.  Ernest and Hadley had traveled to Pamplona to see the running of the bulls, where he finally found inspiration for his writing.  It was during this period that he wrote his famous novel, The Sun Also Rises, and also met and began an affair with Pauline Pfeiffer who became his second wife.

Whatever you think about Ernest Hemingway the man, Paris Wife made for fascinating reading, McLain offers a glimpse into a marriage and a world that seems by parts both interesting and immensely sad.  I'm not sure how much further I want or need to delve into these lives but it has been enlightening.  I suspect he had the ability to be a real bastard, but I still feel a twinge 'something' (sympathy?  understanding?) for his struggles as an author.  It seems as though he worked so hard to create this myth of being 'Ernest Hemingway' that not even he could really live up to it and he and others suffered for it along the way.

This has inspired me to finally pick up Ernest Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises, to get an even fuller picture of this period.  I've also got A Moveable Feast, which was published posthumously about his life in 20s Paris with Hadley, at the ready.  And out of curiosity I've been dipping into Hadley: The First Mrs. Hemingway by Alice Hunt Sokoloff.   

Comments

[Julia]

I'm so glad you enjoyed this book. I loved it, myself. I'm rather opposite you, having read 4-5 biographies of Hem and all his books; I might be a little bit obsessive. I've never read any books about his wives, though. (I've eyed them. Maybe someday.) I'd be interested to hear what you think of the Sokoloff - which I've had recommended. Here's my review of The Paris Wife, if you're interested: http://pagesofjulia.wordpress.com/2011/03/18/the-paris-wife-by-paula-mclain/

[Kathy]

This book is on my to read list, so I was interested to hear what you had to say about it. I read A Moveable Feast last year and liked it quite a bit, and generally I'm not a fan of Hemingway's writing. Another book you might be interested in is Travels With Myself and Another, written by Martha Gellhorn, Hemingway's third wife ("Another" is Hemingway). I haven't read it yet, but want to. (Boy, that to-read list is lo-o-ong.)

[jenn]

I really, really want to read this book, and this review makes me want to start it tonight. I have long loved Hemingway's writing, and he fascinates me.

[Danielle]

Julia--I'm not sure why I've not read Hemingway before--other than a few short stories. I have heard all sorts of things about his private life, but that didn't really put me off reading his work, though like you, I do find it all very interesting now that I've had a taste. I am glad I've finally picked up one of his books, though. What little I've read of the Sokoloff has been interesting as well (where I got Hadley's quote)--it's short so I hope to share something about it eventually. Thanks very much for sharing the link!
Kathy-It's beautifully written and quite well done--not over the top in any way, while still presenting a believable picture of the two. I think you would like it. I'm very curious about A Moveable Feast and have an old used copy so might read that as well sometime this year. The Gellhorn book sounds good, too. My list is Loooooong, too! :)
Jenn--I wasn't quite sure what to expect from it--I don't always like fictional books about real people, but this did feel very authentic. He is a fascinating individual--I think I'll read more of his work now, though, before diving into any biographies. You'll have to let me know what you think of this when you get to it!

[Caroline]

I got this here and really want to read it. I've always been a Hemingway fan. I read many of his novels and short stories. One of my flats In Paris was opposite the house in which he lived when he lived in Paris.

[litlove]

So glad you enjoyed this as I finally succumbed and ordered myself a copy! Now, just need to find a few days to read it in...

[Annie]

This is next in line as soon as I've finished the new David Lodge. You've jogged me into getting a move on so that I can reach it. Thanks.

[bibliolathas]

The stories of Martha Gellhorn's life with Hemingway are hair-raising. He really wasn't husband material!

[Harriet]

I read it while ago and loved it.

[Julia]

bibliolathas - no joke!!

Danielle, I've enjoyed reading your thoughts. I look forward to you sharing on Sokoloff and also The Sun Also Rises!

[Amanda R.]

I just picked this up from the library last week. I'm finishing up a bio of Sylvia Beach and I'm in a 1920s/30s Paris ex-pat mood!

[Reviewsbylola.wordpress.com]

I can't wait to read this one. I downloaded a sample for my kindle but haven't had a chance to read it yet.

[cathy]

I just picked this one up from the library yesterday; your post makes me even more eager to start it.

[Danielle]

Caroline--How cool to have lived across the street from where he did! Now I think I will be reading a few books about Paris in the 20s! I'm glad I am finally reading his work, too.
Litlove--It reads very quickly, so I bet once you start you won't want to put it down! I'd love to hear your take on it.
Annie--I thought this was really well done and interesting, too. It seems to have been well received, which is always a good sign.
Bibliolathas--And this is why I think I'd rather not delve too deeply into her personal life! :)
Harriet--I'm very glad I picked this up. It was a library book, so it was either read it now or get back in line and the lines was well over 100 readers deep! Once I started, though, I didn't want to set it down.
Julia--I'm glad it has pushed me in a new direction in my reading. I always intended to read his work eventually...but you know how that goes. I'm very interested in reading more about the period now.
Amanda--I read a bio of Sylvia Beach ages ago--I might have to dig it out now and read it again. I have a book of Janet Flanner's columns that I'd like to read.
Stephanie--I also downloaded the first chapter on my Nook but was happy to get a library copy to read. I hope you enjoy it too!
Cathy--It looks like a lot of people are interested in this one, which is good--I hope it does well! She is a good writer and has me intrigued now by Hemingway's work!

[Stefanie]

I've never been much of a fan of Hemingway the person and have always been mixed about his writing. This sounds like interesting reading though because it situates them in a social milieu. I might have to check it out!

[iliana]

I tried reading A Moveable Feast when I was in High School as well as The Old Man & the Sea. Oh boy, not good things to read because it led to me not liking Hemingway at all! Would really like to try and read one of his novels now and see what I thought.

[Danielle]

Stefanie--I think this was a good place for me to start with him since I have so little knowledge and experience with either his books or life story. I was a little hesitant, but she dealt with the subject well. And I had heard so much about the man that I was a little afraid of it all, but I am happy to learn a little, but mostly am happy to finally try his work. Somehow The Old Man and the Sea in high school doesn't count as I don't remember anything about it!
Iliana--I have no recollection of his work, so I'm not sure what my impression was. But I am interested in what I'm reading now. It does take some getting used to--simple prose doesn't mean easy by any means. I think I will appreciate it more now than I would have had I tried it earlier.

[tolmsted (BookSexy Review)]

I like Hemingway's short stories, but have always thought his novels a bit melodramatic. Which is odd, when you think about how cold and concise his style of writing is. If you're interested in reading about another of Hemingway's wives, there is a great Martha Gellhorn bio "Gellhorn: A 20th Century Life by Caroline Moorehead that came out in 2003. From your review, it seems she was the complete opposite of Hadley.

Thank you for a great review - I had seen "Paris Wife" & wanted to learn more about it.

[Bellezza]

I'm not a huge fan of Hemingway's, although I did enjoy visiting his home in Key West, Florida, but I love the 20s. I love Paris. I love books about relationships. And so this sounds very interesting to me. I'd heard about it before, but only vaguely. Your review makes me want to read it now.

[Danielle]

Tolmsted--I read The Old Man and the Sea so long ago I feel like I can't even count it as being something I've read. I'm finding The Sun Also Rises a very interesting read--deceptively simple I think. I'd like to read more of his work including his stories--I've read a few over the years. I'm curious about Hemingway but I'm not sure how much I want to know--you know how that goes. I've read bits and pieces. I like the McLain--I think it stands well on its own, but it's hard to separate the story from Hemingway and Hadley! Thanks for the reading suggestion!
Bellezza--I think a lot of people are split when it comes to Hemingway--they seem to either really like him or really not. I'm still deciding, but I do want to read more of his work. It would be interesting to see his house--until just recently I knew very little about him and his life. Part of the book's draw for me was reading about Paris in the 20s--now that is a subject I think I would not tire too quickly of.

[sakura]

I just finished reading A Moveable Feast (on my way back from Paris) and am dying to read The Paris Wife and The Sun Also Rises. A Moveable Feast was a really interesting read especially since it showed a side to Hemingway which surprised me. It will be interesting to see what you think of the book since you've read The Paris Wife.