Hemingway’s Saint Louis: How St. Louisans Shaped His Life and Legacy

Hemingway’s Saint Louis: How St. Louisans Shaped His Life and Legacy by Andrew J. Theising 158 pages

Readers and scholars are aware of Ernest Hemingway’s connection to St. Louis. He was great friend with the Smiths, a high-profile St. Louis family and three of his four wives hailed from the Gateway City. This book is not about St. Louis’ connection to the writer but about those people who influenced him. If anyone is looking for a guide to visit Hemingway attractions, well, there aren’t any.

I lied. There is probably one: The house at 4748 Westminster Place. That was the home of Laura Charles, the woman who raised Katy Smith, Hadley Richardson’s friend, who introduced the two. There’s nothing to see except the house’s exterior.

The chapter on the Smith Family is confusing and seems to be all over the place. I kept having to reread paragraphs to really know who author Theising was discussing.

The rest of the book was a little better. Each chapter focused on an important St. Louis family who touched Hemingway in some remote way. However, this scholarly work is written in the style that I don’t like about reading some biographies---it’s a list of what happened when, and sometimes not in chronological order. I was never able to get to know these people. They are abstract versions of anyone, anywhere.

The most interesting part of the book is the list of “Untimely Ends.”  I knew that Ernest’s father had committed suicide, but I was unaware that his brother and sister also met the same fate. In addition, there were many (12 in all) people in Ernest’s wide circle who died before the age of 70. That could make an interesting book, how all those young deaths attributed to his suicide.

I learned of this book when the author did a segment of KETC’s “Living St. Louis” show.  It was much more fascinating hearing Andrew Theising talk about the Hemingway’s St. Louis connection than it was to read the book. Therefore, “Hemingway’s Saint Louis: How St. Louisans Shaped His Life and Legacy,” receives 2 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Boats Against the Current: The Honeymoon Summer of Scott and Zelda

Boats Against the Current: The Honeymoon Summer of Scott and Zelda by Richard Webb, Jr  192 pages

I’ve been enamored with the Jazz Age, and especially F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, since the first time I read The Great Gatsby. I’m one of the few people I know who really like it. And as I learned more about the couple, I grew fascinated with their lifestyle. There is just something about it that makes me wish I was there for one Gatsby-style party.

This coffee table book focuses on what was probably the happiest time for the lavish-living couple: their honeymoon in Westport, Connecticut.  After having been thrown out of several hotels in New York, S and Z made their way to “The Gray House,” where they continued their wild parties.

While the Fitzgerald’s play an important part of the book, its main focus is to prove that Westport, not Long Island, was the setting for The Great Gatsby. The author, Richard Webb, decided to prove the claim made by author Barbara Probst was true and does a wonderful job substantiating her claim.

Readers learn about the reclusive, multi-millionaire F. E. Lewis, and his estate Longshore, who was, more than likely, Scott’s inspiration for Jay Gatsby. Articles from area newspapers and a few S and Z diary entries make for fascinating reading.   But what I enjoyed most was the section called “Behind the Scenes in 1920s Westport.” It contains brief synopsis about the places and the people which Webb writes and provides a clear case for Webb’s, and Probst’s, claim.

It was heartbreaking to read of Scott’s alcoholism (30+ beers and a quart of gin---day) and Zelda’s need for a mental institution and her ultimate death in a fire at the asylum. 

Boats Against the Current: The Honeymoon Summer of Scott and Zelda receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.