Thoughts to Consider

 

"There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed."

-Ernest Hemingway, Ernest Hemingway Quotes
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Hemingway did say something significant when he said that writing is like bleeding. Of course, most of us use computers today, not typewriters, but the sentiment remains the same. Writing makes one feel vulnerable and exposed as if we are preparing for someone to disagree with our words in the very next moment. Even this carefree blog can make me feel like that, but at my age, I already have offended so many people,  I assume, that it doesn't bother me at all to think that someone might have a different opinion than mine. So, feel free to leave your comments on my blogs, knowing that I will not think differently about you than I do at this current time.

So, what have I been reading? Well, I think I read four books in the past month, and I wrote about most of them last week As you know, I've been on an Ursula Hegi kick lately, and I've enjoyed her books immensely. As a matter of fact, I can't think of an author that I've enjoyed more in the last few years. I tried to send her an email but I couldn't find an email address for her. Often I'll try to contact an author that I enjoyed, always in the hopes of receiving an answer. I've been pleasantly surprised most of the time as I've gotten responses from Mildred Kalish, Jennifer Coburn, and Connie Gantz. I also received a form letter from Barbara Kingsolver a few years ago, as I mentioned before, but her signature was done with her own hand. I was just happy to get a response from her as she is one of my most admired authors.  Some other well-known authors who I've met for their autographs are Jimmy Carter, Frank McCourt, Dr. Paul Austin, and Rabbi Harold Kushner. I treasure the opportunities that I had to see these writers and to learn more about their lives.

I'm currently reading A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway (1929).  I have been known to reach for the classics time and again, and I'm enjoying this one so far. Other classics that I've read are Moby Dick, Huckleberry Finn, Uncle Tom's Cabin, Anna Karenina, The Old Man and the Sea, A Prayer for Owen Meany, Great Expectations, The Grapes of Wrath, Pride and Prejudice, The Catcher and the Rye, and others. I've enjoyed most of the classics, and reading them has helped me play "Jeopardy" at home. Now back to Hemingway...he wrote nearly two dozen books, and many of them won prizes and are read by many high school and college students today. The author died in 1961, but I don't believe his writings will be replaced on the list of "Greats" for a long time. If you're interested in the early writing career of Hemingway, you might like to read McLain's book from 2011, The Paris Wife. The book sheds light on the early writing struggles that the author faced as well as his relationship with his first wife, Hadley Richardson. They knew each other for less than a year when they moved to Paris to begin a new life. They later had a son, Jack, as Hemingway battled his inner demons and struggles to make a living as an author.

As for A Farewell to Arms, I haven't read enough of it to give an accurate review of the book, so I'll save that for next time. If you have never seen the movie, "Midnight in Paris," I highly recommend it. It's a fun story of a man in Paris who sees famous writers and artists from the past every night. He meets Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Picasso, and others. I know I've mentioned this movie before, but it seemed appropriate to repeat myself here. Tomorrow night I meet with my new book club, so I'll have plenty of material to discuss in my next post.

This weekend I found a good movie at Red Box. The movie is "Genius," the story of Thomas Wolfe and his editor at Scribner, Maxwell Perkins.  The movie is a new release so look for it. Wolfe is played by Jude Law, and Perkins is played by Colin Firth. The movie gives us insight into the struggles that many authors face in order to produce a truly great novel. Wolfe's most famous book was Look Homeward, Angel and when he first presented the manuscript to Perkins, it was WAY too long. The book was successful from the beginning, and Wolfe was elated. We've been to the Wolfe Home in downtown Asheville right here in North Carolina, so I was familiar with him. We also visited his grave there a few years ago. Incidentally, Asheville is about 3 1/2 hours from us here in Durham, so it makes for a great weekend trip. You might also be interested to know that the former farm of Carl Sandburg is near Asheville and can be toured. Sandburg was once the poet laureate for our state. His wife was known for raising her prize-winning goats.

And that's about all for today, friends and family. Thanks so much for reading. I appreciate your time and look forward to sharing some additional thoughts about great books, movies, and just about anything else that I think is interesting.

Happy Fall,

Melissa Hill
Book Blogger
Teacher of English as a Second Language
www.onegoodbookblog.blogspot.com