The Paris Wife

By Paula McLain

Book Overview

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - A deeply evocative story of ambition and betrayal that captures the love affair between two unforgettable people, Ernest Hemingway and his wife Hadley--from the author of Love and Ruin and the new novel When the Stars Go Dark, available now!

"A beautiful portrait of being in Paris in the glittering 1920s--as a wife and as one's own woman."--Entertainment Weekly

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY People - Chicago Tribune - NPR - The Philadelphia Inquirer - Kirkus Reviews - The Toronto Sun - BookPage

Chicago, 1920: Hadley Richardson is a quiet twenty-eight-year-old who has all but given up on love and happiness--until she meets Ernest Hemingway. Following a whirlwind courtship and wedding, the pair set sail for Paris, where they become the golden couple in a lively and volatile group--the fabled "Lost Generation"--that includes Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Though deeply in love, the Hemingways are ill prepared for the hard-drinking, fast-living, and free-loving life of Jazz Age Paris. As Ernest struggles to find the voice that will earn him a place in history and pours himself into the novel that will become The Sun Also Rises, Hadley strives to hold on to her sense of self as her roles as wife, friend, and muse become more challenging. Eventually they find themselves facing the ultimate crisis of their marriage--a deception that will lead to the unraveling of everything they've fought so hard for.

A heartbreaking portrayal of love and torn loyalty, The Paris Wife is all the more poignant because we know that, in the end, Hemingway wrote that he would rather have died than fallen in love with anyone but Hadley.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0345521307
• ISBN13: 9780345521309
• Release Date: February 2011
• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.43 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Love The Paris Wife

Wow. Paula McLain is a master when it comes to introducing us to historical characters. After reading this I went on a deep dive into Hemingway’s life. I adore the humanness of all of her books.

The Paris Wife

I loved this book and I'm buying it for a friend. Love how she writes!

Poetic writing, intriguing story

When I found out the author is a poet, I was not surprised at all. Her writing flows perfectly, poetically. The story is fiction, but based off of the Hemingways lives'. I loved this novel and didn't want it to end.