The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

One thing you should know about me is that sometimes I go into bookstores or libraries and select books to read based on nothing more substantial than the fact that I like they way they look, feel, and smell.  Somehow they speak to me, and I pick them.  Most people think that’s weird, but I prefer my method even over Amazon.com’s recommendations for me.  (gasp)  I really hope libraries and bookstores never completely go away.

So I needed some books to take on my retreat to Maui this January.  And I saw this one at a bookstore.  I like wives.  Find them interesting.  Also, I’m going to Paris this year with my friend Shalaina.  So I took this one along to Maui.  (Along with six other books I already had in queue.)  So… most people understand that when you bring 7 books to Maui for a week, you’re not going to finish them.  No way, right?  But I get over-ambitious.  And I knew I wouldn’t have my laptop and so I was a bit afraid of being bored.  Little did I realize that wouldn’t be an issue AT ALL, but I digress.   Long story short, I’m not finished with this novel yet, but I’m enjoying it so much that I wanted to blog about it.  It’s about Ernest Hemingway and his wife, and their marriage and his work and relationships with other writers and artists of the time.  Warning: the plot is a little depressing, but the prose is so nicely written that it’s such a pleasure to read.

I don’t know much about Hemingway.  I vaguely recall being forced to read lots of his stuff in high school English, but being too pressed for time to read it and enjoy it.  I think I’m remembering more of the short stories than the novels.  But this book is making me want to go take another look at Hemingway’s work.  So maybe I’ll do that soon.  A Hemingway blog series.  Don’t hold your breath for that one, but it’s possible.