Adult Book Discussion: The Paris Wife

To celebrate the 1920's, we read The Paris Wife in February. It chronicles the marriage of Hadley Richardson and an unfamous young Hemingway. I hadn't read this until our book club chose it, but I had read some Hemingway. Hit titles in my book club include The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, The Aviator's Wife,  and Mrs. Tom Thumb, so I was hoping the group would like The Paris Wife, too.

The response was lukewarm. We all liked the book, but we weren't racing back to the pages to read 'one more chapter'. It was a retelling of their brief marriage during their time in Paris. Hadley as a character was more narrator than anything, and we agreed that she seemed to be lacking a strong sense of voice. We were surprised at how often we sympathized with Hemingway, who, while rather wicked, was portrayed in an adoring light.

Topics we spent the most time on:

• Why does Hadley continue to love Ernest?
• Was Ernest wrong to end the marriage? Were his actions in any way understandable?
• What undiagnosed issues did Hemingway have? What family history points to something beyond moodiness?
• How were the other historical characters portrayed (The Fitzgeralds, for example)? Was it accurate? How does it differ from other books, like Call Me Zelda?
• How did the culture of 1920's Paris contribute to the destruction of the marriage? Could it have survived elsewhere?

I would recommend this as a book club book. It's an easy read, and aside from some animal violence during bullfighting scenes, my group didn't find the plot objectionable. I'm interested to reread some Hemingway after reading this title!