Robinne Lee Instagram – I bought this book way back in 2012, in Los Angeles. I had heard great things about it — a novel about Ernest Hemingway’s first marriage told through the perspective of his wife — and as a writer and lifelong Francophile, knew that I’d probably find something in the pages to love. But life got in the way.
Fast forward 10 years and our move to France. While purging much of our belongings, I donated about a 1000 books. I put a few hundred others in storage. And the 100 or so I thought we couldn’t do without for the first few years, I either shipped or brought by plane. Including this one, because what better way to read #TheParisWife than as a Paris wife?
Admittedly, I’ve never read any Hemingway. I know I know…. I’m more a Fitzgerald fan. But in 2023, I happened on a tour of Hemingway’s Parisian haunts in the Latin Quarter. And last summer, I visited his house-cum-museum in Key West. Both were fascinating. And so I knew it was time to pluck this book out of my monstrous #tbr pile, and allow myself the journey.
What I did not expect was how much it would affect me. To find myself weeping over a love story that has been sitting on my shelves for 13 years. A book I carted across an ocean. A series of events that occurred 100 years ago in my own neighborhood and those adjacent. To be so enthralled with a character who was at times utterly loathsome. To want to both shake and hug the protagonist. To resist visiting Wikipedia at the most tense parts, to see how it all played out. To allow myself fully to take this journey…
They say that reading a book is like dancing w/ a partner. From the very first page you hand yourself over to the author and allow them to take the lead. You hope that they don’t trip or stumble or step on your feet. You pray that they are going to dip and swing and spin and lead you gracefully and daringly to fabulous places. And you typically can tell within the first few pages what kind of hands you’re in. @paula_mclain is one of those Fred Astaire authors. From the first page, which coincidentally enough begins w/ a dance scene, I was invested. Such an unexpected gift! Thank you, Ms. McLain. It was worth the wait. | Posted on 19/Aug/2025 21:48:18
