This post is my review on The Paris Wife by Paula Mclain.
Set in the 1920s, The Paris wife tells the story of Hadley Richardson, first wife of Ernest Hemingway. Hadley is a 28-year-old who mostly given up on love and happiness until she meets Ernest in Chicago. After a whirlwind of courtship and falling madly in love, the two marry then set sail for Paris where Ernest is set to make it big. As Ernest struggles to find his voice, Hadley realizes that she is not ready for the hard-drinking, fast-living and free-loving life of Jazz Age Paris. Add in a baby and a love affair, and all chaos ensues. The Paris Wife is a heartbreaking portrayal of love and torn loyalty.
Even though this book is considered to be historical fiction, Paula mentioned in her note on sources that it was important for her to render the particulars of their lives as accurately as possible, and to follow the very well documented historical record. So basically, we are actually reading a live action account of what went down between Hadley and Ernest with some minor revisions. I have always been a fan of historical fiction, and it was interesting to read about one of America's most influential writers. There are some slow spots within the story, but it picks back up fairly quickly, especially within the moments where Hadley is finding out that Ernest is cheating on her. I'm all about the drama :P However, I felt like Hadley really didn't fight for Ernest, at least not as much as she could have. Yes she was definitely better off without him in the end, but if you are really in love with someone, I would have thought she would have fought a lot harder. Some reviewers have even considered her to be a pushover and her character made the book uninteresting. All in all, it was interesting to learn about the history of Ernest and Hadley.
Well that's all I really have to say about The Paris Wife. I will be posting a video review on our YouTube channel tomorrow.
Until next time!
- D
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