C'est tellement simple, l'amour.....

I have been reading some great books lately. My daughter-in-law publishes a terrific blog ( Reviewed by Mom ) and sometimes I get to review some books for her, which is so much fun for me. I read The Most Beautiful Walk in the World by John Baxter, which is a pretty witty "travel" guide to Paris. Paris of the 1920's & 30's. The times of Gertrude Stein, James Joyce, Sylvia Beach , F Scott Fitzgerald and Papa Hemingway, all ex-pat writers living in Paris. As he walks the streets of Paris on his literary tour, you can really get a feel for what is was like to live back then, right after the war. I was taken with the era. That book lead me to my next, which was The Paris Wife by Paula McLain. This is the story of Ernest Hemingway's first wife, Hadley Richardson, she was one of four wives of
"Hem ". What an interesting life she lead married to one of the world's most famous writers. They moved to Paris after they married and lived in a tiny apt over a dance hall. He was not well known, and was writing for periodicals. He was just being introduced to the other published authors living in Paris. Jazz-Age Paris was a pretty wild place back then, very bohemian and Hadley was just a regular girl from the American Mid -West. I loved this book and it lead me to A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway. This is Hemingway's account of life in Paris at the time he was married to Hadley Richardson. I don't ever remember reading Hemingway and it is quite a treat. All I ever heard about him was his wild and wicked ways with women & drink. But after having read these books, I see that as a young man, he was kind and loving to his wife and son. He was ecccentric, no doubt, and he fit right in with life in Paris at the time, but he was truer to his wife than I expected. Once his writing was taken seriously and he began to get published, it was clear he would leave Hadley behind but I get the feeling  that he probably regretted it the rest of his life.
I wholeheartedly recommend all three books for summer reading. It is all very romantic and dreamy, just right for the beach. You will find yourself wearing a bathing suit with a French beret !! Peace.