Written towards the end of Hemingway''s life and published posthumously, A Moveable Feast is a touching look
back at the author''s youth. Living in Paris in the 1920''s among other notable ex-patriot American writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Gertrude Stein, Hemingway recalls his life with first wife Hadley and their young son (nicknamed Bumby). After quitting newspaper work to concentrate on
writing fiction, Hemingway and his family endure the poverty most young full-time writers encounter. His descriptions of missing meals and scrimping on clothing are somewhat romanticized, as Hemingway is a wealthy and famous novelist at the time of writing, but they effectively illustrate the tightness of the family circle in the face of poverty and highlight the deep and sincere love between Ernest and Hadley, whose remarkable spirit and patience must have been a genuine support for Hemingway in his 20s.
Other writers move in and out of the book, as they came in and out of his life: Gertrude Stein and her partner, Ford Madox Ford, F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife Zelda are among the most vividly drawn portraits. Hemingway can be harsh in his recollections, and even downright cruel when he makes public events which were surely never intended to be so. Part of the allure of the novel is the difficulty we have in condoning Hemingway''s barbed comments and unsympathetic view of others. While we may see him as harsh and intolerant, we cannot deny his skill in recalling a scene decades old, with dialogue and description that make it alive and timeless.
A Moveable Feast is a book to re-read. Each time you encounter it, you will likely note something you have missed before, a small detail that highlights a part of Hemingway''s character which can make you see him more clearly, or an event whose significance may not have been grasped earlier. His novels are justly regarded as magnificent, but there is a charm and innocence in A Moveable Feast which does not exist in Hemingway''s fiction. The poverty he makes no effort to hide serves to highlight the passion and dedication he had for his craft, and the idealism of his youth is tender and beautiful to sense. The love he demonstrates for his son and first wife appear as perfect and pure, but bittersweet when one knows that shortly after the narrative ends Hemingway and Hadey''s marriage crumbled.
The Parisian scenes that Hemingway sketches make the book worth reading in themselves. He captures the cafes and streets of the quintessential artist''s city aptly. While he does not lose himself in excessive description, the city emerges from his text sharply and brilliantly. Even someone who has never visited Paris will quickly fall in love with this portrait of the city.
Hemingway also describes at length his opinions on and attitude towards his writing. He relates his methods and recalls his determination and perseverance, even in the face of discouragement. Any writer knows the difficulty in continuing to work despite rejection and Hemingway does not shy away from recalling his own years of near-constant failure. In the year he describes, he had not yet written a single novel, and his stories were being regularly returned, unpublished. His persistence is impressive and his memories of writing according to a strict schedule help us to see the dedication he had.
A Moveable Feast is a powerful book, essential for anyone who appreciates Hemingway''s work. You don''t have to be familiar with his other work to appreciate it, but you will surely be inspried to read his fiction after this book.