Ernest Hemingway: A Writer's Life
Written by Catherine Reef
Narrated by Jill Shellabarger
4/5
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About this audiobook
Meet one of the most significant and notorious American writers of the 20th century. Ernest Hemingway is considered one of the greatest writers in modern history, and his novels and stories are read, studied, and imitated around the world. His concise prose style earned him both a Pulitzer and a Nobel Prize. His name conjures up vivid images: grand adventurer, soldier, war correspondent, big-game hunter, bullfight aficionado, and writer. His life reads like a suspense story—full of action, romance, heartbreak, machismo, mishaps, celebrity, and tragedy. Author Catherine Reef has crafted a compelling biography that is not only a highly enjoyable account of an extraordinary life but also an accessible and tempting introduction to the work of one of our most revered—and sometimes reviled—American icons.
Catherine Reef
Catherine Reef is the author of more than forty nonfiction books, including many highly acclaimed biographies for young people. She lives in College Park, Maryland.
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Reviews for Ernest Hemingway
23 ratings4 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/54
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I enjoyed the book. It captures Hemingway’s zest for the outdoors and his seriousness about writing. I do not know if Hemingway’s connection with Soviet spies was well documented when this book came out. His blow up with Dos Passos over The Communist Front’s atrocities in Spain during the Spanish Civil War, I believe, was known. Also, his caddish treatment of women is not adequately covered and is somewhat dismissive. That said. The book is well written and ably displays his struggles both personally and as a writer. It is a quite worthwhile retrospective of his life and writing.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wonderfull and so well read
I tried to read him when I was many years ago I shall now reread all his work Thanks - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5“All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.” - Ernest Hemingway Catherine Reef’s book is a rich and highly readable account of one of American Literature’s most fascinating stories: the actual life of Ernest Hemingway. His biography reads like the script of an action film; complete with guns, wild animals, women, and war -- and also intense darkness and heartbreak. “A Writer’s Life” follows the literary figure through two World Wars, eleven novels, four wives, innumerable scars, and one very untimely ending. Based on the material presented in the book, it is easy to understand why people gravitated towards Hemingway. His zeal and passion was magnetic, and his raw talent was irreproachable. I absolutely loved reading about his early years in Paris with his first wife Hadley, and during the same time, the relationships he began to form with other writers (Sherwood Anderson, Scott F. Fitzgerald, Ezra Pound, Gertrude Stein, etc.). “Everything we did took on new importance when (Ernest) was with us,” said his friend, Ruth Bradford. (45) As his story continued, it also became easy to understand why the people in his life became so exhausted by him. His passion and zeal spiraled into a life of recklessness and a general disregard for those who cared about him the most. It was heartbreaking to read about the multitude of relationships he threw away for selfish or arrogant reasons. As one close acquaintance described, he was “an impossible friend.” (109)The book touches briefly on Hemingway’s “theory of omission,” (84, 101) which guided the simplicity and sparseness of his writing. I have always felt that this was the single most fascinating element of his prose -- the ability to say so much, with so few words. However, after reading this biography, it has been interesting to consider how little any “theory of omission” applied to the way he actually lived, which was quite the opposite of simple or sparse. Despite all of his faults, however, I found myself rooting for him throughout every phase of his life. There is just something inspiring about the fearless and unceasing way in which he attacked the world. “A Writer’s Life” is a wonderfully written biography, filled with incredible primary source photos and fascinating quotations directly from (and about) Hemingway. Over the course of the book, the author summarizes all of his major novels and points out the direct biographical connections. This “survey” of his work, so to speak, is a really excellent introduction to Hemingway’s catalogue and an excellent starting point for any reader with a budding interest in the writer.