What do You think about Papa Hemingway (1966)?
This is a courageously written book by a good friend and writing compatriot of Hemingway. This reader learned more about the man behind the legend by reading this book which read like a precise memoir of a friendship. I became acquainted with his demons and what drove him. I also gained a new respect for him as a writer. It's hard telling what propelled Hemingway inexoraby toward ending his own life. He wasn't at his best prior to his suicide -- that much is for sure. His physical and mental health had been compromised by hard living and multiple injuries sustained in a plane crash. Up until then he seemed the master of his own realm and much of the bravura and machismo attached to him lines right up with exactly how he lived his life. Most fascinating to learn in reading this book is that Hemingway had a tender side and was himself, a human being full of faults that he spent a lifetime compensating for, just as the rest of us do - at least those of us who are willing to admit it.
—Denis
Others have criticized Hotchner for not telling the whole truth, for not recounting Hemingway's bullying, braggadocio and boorishness. But Hem was a friend, and The Code dictates you don't stab friends in the back, even dead ones (although Hemingway himself often did, both living and dead friends). So what we get here is Ernest Hemingway at his best and, perhaps, life at its finest, with adventure, lovely women, good friends, good food and drink, beautiful surroundings and honest fun. It's life as we wish we could live it--at least until the pleasure gets sucked out of it for E.H. and he kills himself. So what if it isn't historically faithful? What it gives us are the high spirits and high life of living large. It is a bible on how to live, albeit with a tragic ending that in no way diminishes the beauty of what preceded it. (Note: I read this book decades ago and now have reread it with perhaps even more pleasure.)
—Rick Skwiot
In 1948 A.E. Hotchner was dispatched from New York to Havana by Cosmopolitan Magazine to do a story on Hemingway. Hotchner was in awe of the famous writer and tried to dodge the assignment. Well, it didn’t work and even as he was intimidated by the thoughts of how Hemingway would dismiss him without so much as a hint of a story, he screwed up his nerve and initiated the first contact. And from their first meeting at the Floridita Bar in Havana, to Hotchner’s dismay, the two connected. A true friendship ensued and Hotchner traveled to Cuba at least once a year and communicated frequently by letter, wire and phone. Papa Hemingway called him Hotch and Hotch was as close to Papa as anyone. During their general conversations apparently very few subjects were off limits. Most of Papa’s personal problems were discussed; he even talked about some of his writing techniques. Travel was a big part of Hemingway’s life. He paid regular visits to New York, Paris, Madrid, Key West and Ketchum, Idaho. Spain was his favorite destination and the Spanish lifestyle was reflected in his writing from ‘The Sun Also Rises’ to various short stories.There was no one thing in this book that defined the Hotchner Hemingway relationship unless you consider brotherly love. That kindness is on full display toward the end as Hotchner describes Hemingway’s mental path to self-destruction.Papa Hemingway is a must read human tragedy.
—Tom Barnes
