WHO:
Paul Hendrickson
WHAT:
HEMINGWAY’S BOAT:
Everything He Loved in Life, and Lost,
1934-1961
WHEN:
Published by Knopf September 23, 2011
WHERE:
Author tour: Boston, Chicago, Key West, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Washington DC
WHY:
“An absorbing and important interpretation of Ernest Hemingway’s ambitions, passions, and tragedies during the last years of his life.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Moving, highly evocative, and beautifully written.”
“In 1934, Ernest Hemingway bought a 38-foot motorized fishing vessel at a Brooklyn boatyard and set out for the Caribbean. An integral part of his final 27 years, Pilar offered afternoons of solace on waters between Key West and Cuba, during which Hemingway fished, drank, wrote, bickered with wives and sons and entertained visitors. Hendrickson offers a moving, highly evocative account of Hemingway’s turbulent later years, when he lost the favor of critics, the love of wives and friends and, ultimately, his ability to write.
“Drawing on interviews, documents (including 34 Pilar logs) and secondary sources, the author succeeds in restoring a sense of Hemingway the man, seen as a flawed, self-sabotaging individual whose kindness and gentleness have been overlooked in accounts of his cruel and boorish side. Even as he attacked critics and fired his shotgun angrily at sea birds, the tortured author proved remarkably sweet and friendly to many, including Arnold Samuelson, an admiring young writer who became Hemingway’s assistant on Pilar; and Walter Houk, now in his 80s, who remembers the author fondly as ‘a great man with great faults.’
“Seven years in the making, this vivid portrait allows us to see Hemingway on the Pilar once again, standing on the flying bridge and guiding her out of the harbor at sunrise.”
—Kirkus (starred review)
“Illuminating and sympathetic…Hendrickson’s book is filled with intensity, humanity, and more.”
—Steve Paul, Booklist (starred review)
Media Resources:
About the book | Author bio | Download the jacket | Download the press release
Publicity:
Michelle Somers | 212-572-2082 | msomers@randomhouse.com
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