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The Paris Wife

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The Paris Wife

By: Paula McLain
Narrated by: Carrington MacDuffie
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About this listen

Chicago, 1920: Hadley Richardson is a shy 28-year-old who has all but given up on love and happiness when she meets Ernest Hemingway and is captivated by his energy, intensity and burning ambition to write. After a whirlwind courtship and wedding, the pair set sail for France. But glamorous Jazz Age Paris, full of artists and writers, fuelled by alcohol and gossip, is no place for family life and fidelity.

Ernest and Hadley's marriage begins to founder, and the birth of a beloved son serves only to drive them further apart. Then, at last, Ernest's ferocious literary endeavours begin to bring him recognition - not least from a woman intent on making him her own....

©2011 Paula McLain (P)2011 Random House Inc Historical Fiction

Critic Reviews

"I read it in two days, laughing and crying. What a heartbreaker . . . It has all the ingredients of a literary heart-thumper: sex, love, ambition, betrayal, impossibility and regret . . . McLain has given the voice, mind, pen and strength to a woman. Hadley is an intelligent, strong, adult woman in a deeply unsympathetic situation - glittering, but toxic and ultimately very undermining. It's a very haunting combination." (Bidisha)
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I thought that this would be a hard book to listen to but the narrator was absolutely brilliant. She kept you interested to the very end.
Hadley Hemingway was an amazing woman that put up with so much.
Interesting read that makes you want to research the people long after finishing the book.
Highly recommended

Such an Amazing Story

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I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Historically interesting. The audio performances are very well done. I would recommend.

A Great Read

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I enjoyed listening to the book so much, the story was. It only intriguing but I found myself laughing, getting angry and feeling so much throughout it. It's very well played and would recommend this as a must listen!

What an interesting view...

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The story of Ernest Hemingway’s early years as told through the voice of Hadley, his first wife.

I enjoyed this although found the narration a little annoying. The voice of Ernest in particular.

The text is generally good but a little laboured at times. A good read overall though.

Great story

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