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retiredlibrarylady's review against another edition
2.0
I assume the author read some of Gellhorn's work to find that sex was painful for her... but all that was distracting in this book about Gellhorn (Hemingway's third wife) and Hemingway. Neither of them comes across as a sympathetic character. Interesting but not riveting.
kdurham2's review against another edition
3.0
Check out the full review at Kritters Ramblings
A historical fiction book that takes back to the time of Ernest Hemingway and the moments before he meets his third wife, Martha Gellhorn. Martha is much more than one of Hemingway's wives and this book celebrates her life that she had before and during Hemingway.
I went into this book a fan of Meg Waite Clayton and was ready to see what she would do to make this historical moment come alive and I have to be honest it didn't meet my expectations. The book felt dry and just didn't move the way I wanted it to. I didn't expect it to grip me like a mystery/thriller book can, but I have read many historical fiction books where the story flows so fluid that it is hard to put down in hopes to find out what is going to happen next.
A historical fiction book that takes back to the time of Ernest Hemingway and the moments before he meets his third wife, Martha Gellhorn. Martha is much more than one of Hemingway's wives and this book celebrates her life that she had before and during Hemingway.
I went into this book a fan of Meg Waite Clayton and was ready to see what she would do to make this historical moment come alive and I have to be honest it didn't meet my expectations. The book felt dry and just didn't move the way I wanted it to. I didn't expect it to grip me like a mystery/thriller book can, but I have read many historical fiction books where the story flows so fluid that it is hard to put down in hopes to find out what is going to happen next.
karnaconverse's review against another edition
3.0
A fast read that offers insights into war-time reporting and the volatile relationship between Martha Gellhorn and the writer/lover/wife relationship she had with Ernest Hemingway.
Martha Gellhorn is a 28-year-old writer who'd just published The Trouble I've Seen, a novel based on stories she'd collected in the Depression-era Hoovervilles, when she first meets Ernest Hemingway in late 1936. She's also just returned from a trip to Paris, Stuttgart, and Munich where she'd seen the impact Fascism and the 1935 Nuremberg Race Laws were beginning to have in Europe. She was convinced Americans needed to hear these stories; Hemingway, too, became convinced and by March 1937, both were on their way to over the Spanish Civil War. She for Collier's, he for the North American Newspaper Alliance.
The two witness the atrocities of war first-hand and bring the stories back to an America that's not quite ready to hear them. In 1940, and after Hemingway's divorce from his second wife, Pauline, is finalized, they marry. During their marriage, Hemingway wrote the novel, For Whom the Bell Tolls and Gellhorn established herself as war correspondent. Their marriage lasted only 5 years.
Because Clayton tells Gellhorn's story in first person, the novel reads like a diary. This format will not appeal to all readers--much of the focus is on the volatile relationship with Hemingway--but it showcases the vast amount of research Clayton did and brings Gellhorn to life for readers who may not be familiar with her in a way that no other structure could do.
Read on Kindle as part of Amazon's July First Reads program.
Martha Gellhorn is a 28-year-old writer who'd just published The Trouble I've Seen, a novel based on stories she'd collected in the Depression-era Hoovervilles, when she first meets Ernest Hemingway in late 1936. She's also just returned from a trip to Paris, Stuttgart, and Munich where she'd seen the impact Fascism and the 1935 Nuremberg Race Laws were beginning to have in Europe. She was convinced Americans needed to hear these stories; Hemingway, too, became convinced and by March 1937, both were on their way to over the Spanish Civil War. She for Collier's, he for the North American Newspaper Alliance.
The two witness the atrocities of war first-hand and bring the stories back to an America that's not quite ready to hear them. In 1940, and after Hemingway's divorce from his second wife, Pauline, is finalized, they marry. During their marriage, Hemingway wrote the novel, For Whom the Bell Tolls and Gellhorn established herself as war correspondent. Their marriage lasted only 5 years.
Because Clayton tells Gellhorn's story in first person, the novel reads like a diary. This format will not appeal to all readers--much of the focus is on the volatile relationship with Hemingway--but it showcases the vast amount of research Clayton did and brings Gellhorn to life for readers who may not be familiar with her in a way that no other structure could do.
Read on Kindle as part of Amazon's July First Reads program.
whoahknelly's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoyed this, and am amazed at what Meg Waite Clayton pulled off. She did an incredible amount of research, which made the book and the first person voice of Martha Gellhorn totally believable and fascinating. I enjoyed The Paris Wife, which is what led me to read this, and it has been really interesting to learn about the troubled genius of Ernest Hemingway, as well as the time period in which he lived. Our book club read A Moveable Feast and The Paris Wife at the same time, and now we will read Beautiful Exiles and For Whom a Bell Tolls. Should make for good reading and discussion.
impassionskin's review against another edition
Well, I tried. I made it to 48% before deciding to end it. Couldn't even make it to 50%. Not even the audiobook could save this for me. Beautiful Exiles is not terrible, but there is not enough to keep me interested. Perhaps a true literary nerd would enjoy it more.
graceheaberlin's review against another edition
2.0
Meh
I typically read about a book every two weeks and this one took me twice as long to get through. It was well-written but it got boring and didn’t seem to really follow a story line in the second half. Just didn’t do it for me.
I typically read about a book every two weeks and this one took me twice as long to get through. It was well-written but it got boring and didn’t seem to really follow a story line in the second half. Just didn’t do it for me.
mipa_jt's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
babygotstacks's review against another edition
2.0
I am marking this read, but I gave up after the first quarter. I tried, but I could not handle obsessive use of obnoxious nicknames. It was increasingly frequent by the time I gave up. It made it unreadable for me.