100 books like Mrs. Hemingway

I was an avid Philippa Gregory reader in my teens, and I think the books that have an impact during your formative years really stay with you.

It was the first novel that really made me aware of historical fiction, and opened my eyes to the idea that historical events (and people) didn't need to exist purely in factual accounts – their worlds could be opened up through fiction too. I took in far more through novels like this than I did through textbooks.

And, of course, the Boleyn sisters are such wonderful characters, and Philippa Gregory's storytelling so masterful, it's not surprising this book is loved by so many. 

I struggled to pick just one Gill Paul novel as I’ve hugely enjoyed every one I’ve read.

Ultimately, I love to learn something new from a book and, whilst I’d heard of the Romanovs, I knew very little about Russian history and the Revolution. Obviously, with historical fiction, parts are invented – and the main plot twist with this is a theory that has been disproven – so you have to be discerning with what you take as fact.

But historical fiction is such a wonderful way to learn about different eras, and Gill Paul brings worlds and people to life so evocatively.

I'd long been fascinated by Nellie Bly, a remarkable woman considered the world's first investigative journalist, who made her name by undertaking feats such as a real life Around the World in Eighty Days.

This novel gives a brief background to her life but focuses on her time incarcerated in an asylum on Blackwell's Island in New York, where she feigned madness to be committed, then reported on the horrific conditions inside on her release. It's told in a spare, but incredibly moving, style and is a wonderful insight into an incredible woman.

Nell Gwynn is another fascinating (female) historical figure who captures the imagination and has been the subject of much speculation and invention.

Bagwell has clearly researched her subject meticulously, and the novel is a perfect mix of historical detail and bawdy romp, which makes for a very readable, very entertaining novel. I first read it around a decade ago, and it was my favourite read of that year.

A Moveable Feast is life-changing, with its introspective and evocative exploration of Hemingway’s early years as a struggling writer in the 1920s. It heavily inspired me to make my own move and pursue my authorship journey in Paris!

Through vivid and poetic prose, Hemingway captures the bohemian atmosphere of the era. The book delves into themes of creativity, love, loss, and pursuing one's artistic vision. Hemingway's raw and honest reflections on his own experiences and struggles offer profound insights into the nature of art, resilience, and the pursuit of a meaningful life. 

This book inspired me to uncover my passions, live the life of my dreams, embrace the beauty of the world around me, and, most importantly, savor every moment.

This is an intimate, first-person account of 1920’s Paris, and the life of one of the most central characters of the period—the model, singer, and artist, Kiki of Montparnasse as she was known by all. Born in Burgundy in 1901, christened Alice Prin, and raised by her grandmother in abject poverty, at age twelve she was shipped off to Paris to live with the mother she had never known.

The young Alice’s fierce survival instincts immediately translated into a precocious thirst for experience. At fourteen she had her “first contact with art” when she began posing nude for a sculptor. Thereafter, she assumed the name and embraced life as the irrepressible Kiki. Lover of Man Ray, beloved friend of Soutine, Jean Cocteau, and many other artists of the period, she became the toast of Montparnasse, one of the century’s first truly independent women. Man Ray, Foujita, Kisling, and others immortalized… show more.

I’ve only been to Paris one time, but I feel as if I’ve been many times because I toured this city with Paula McLain and the story of Hadley Hemingway, Ernest’s first and most beloved wife. From the cafes to the cobbled streets to the parlors and apartments, I was engrossed. 

This is the wild story of Ernest Hemingway’s first wife. Hadley was a quiet twenty-eight-year-old woman who had given up on love until she met Ernest. Their whirlwind romance was ill-prepared for the fast living of Jazz Age Paris. It is a beautiful portrayal of love and loyalty, of art and heartbreak. 

If I tell you I'm coming from Roaring Twenties and I have fascinating conversations with great characters who lived in Paris in 1920s, you will maybe think I'm a bit weird. And you will be right.

That's my Parisian life. In front of a café crème at La Rotonde café in Montparnasse, I fight with Picasso and I flirt with the young Hemingway.

And my best friend is called Kiki de Montparnasse. I know how to choose my best friend. Kiki was friendly with a strong temper and beautiful. She posed for painters and sculpters whose art now costs a fortune.

And of course Kiki was elected queen of Montparnasse, the place where modern art was created and the navel of the world, according Henry Miller. And like Miller, Kiki's book was censured in USA because it was too spicy.

She even has an introduction written by Ernest Hemingway—a rare… show more.

One of the photographs in my book, One Thousand Buildings of Paris, was the first apartment that Hemingway and his wife, Hadley, shared when they moved to Paris.

Hemingway’s description of the apartment and the period is illuminating and introduces the reader to the famous and infamous and the life they led after the end of WWI and during the Roaring 20s when Paris was the center of artistic life.

Hemingway also reveals his likes and dislikes and his writing life there, and, notwithstanding their friendship, his jealousy of F. Scott Fitzgerald. I’m not a great fan of Hemingway’s writing. I actually prefer Fitzgerald and especially The Great Gatsby, but I digress. 

A Moveable Feast reveals Paris as indeed a moveable feast to savor.

On a quiet street in Dublin, a lost bookshop is waiting to be found… Who could resist that?

I was glad I found this book and its author Evie Woods. She seduced me with her lovely writing and compelling characters. I loved the magical moments when a tree takes over a bedroom just to supply the occupant with books the tree thinks will help her.

I like the idea that no matter what baggage we carry—betrayal, abuse, lost love—we can grow, face our personal truth, and step into a wondrous world.