Unbelievable Happiness and Final Sorrow

The Hemingway-Pfeiffer Marriage

By: Ruth A. Hawkins

Narrated by: Talmadge Ragan

It was the glittering intellectual world of 1920s Paris expatriates in which Pauline Pfeiffer, a writer for Vogue, met Ernest Hemingway and his wife Hadley among a circle of friends that included Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Dos Passos, and Dorothy Parker. Pauline grew close to Hadley but eventually forged a stronger bond with Hemingway himself; with her stylish looks and dedication to Hemingway's writing, Pauline became the source of "unbelievable happiness" for Hemingway and, by 1927, his second wife. Pauline was her husband's best editor and critic, and her wealthy family provided moral and financial support, including the conversion of an old barn to a dedicated writing studio at the family home in Piggott, Arkansas. The marriage lasted 13 years, some of Hemingway's most productive, and the couple had two children.

But the "unbelievable happiness" met with "final sorrow", as Hemingway wrote, and Pauline would be the second of Hemingway's four wives. Unbelievable Happiness and Final Sorrow paints a full picture of Pauline and the role she played in Ernest Hemingway's becoming one of our greatest literary figures.

The book is published by The University of Arkansas Press.

©2012 The University of Arkansas Press (P)2017 Redwood Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"A major scholarly accomplishment - authoritative, thoroughly researched, pioneering, and ably written...a must for Hemingway scholars, teachers, and aficionados." (Anne Marie Candido in Arkansas Historical Quarterly)

"A significant contribution to setting the record straight" ( Publishers Weekly)

"A riveting portrait of a marriage, and a fascinating biography of Pauline Pfeiffer...introduces us to a new heroine in the Hemingway saga." (Mary Dearborn, author of Mailer: A Biography)

Highly researched and descriptive account

This was a beautiful collection of information on the second marriage of Earnest Hemingway to Pauline Pfeiffer. This book navigates the course of the courting and eventual marriage, including the inevitable breakup of Hemingway and the outgoing Hadley Hemingway. This is a highly researched and descriptive account of the events that took place incorporating many of Hemingway's friends including Gertrude Stein and F. Scott Fitzgerald. A must read for lovers of Hemingway.

This audio book was graciously provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review

Interesting read about the Hemingways

The narrator had a strange, halting cadence to her reading that left me wondering if there was mid-sentence editing going on. I found it distracting.

Unbelievable Happiness

I found this to be both informative and entertaining.I had no idea 'Poppa' had such a varied background.Talmadge Tegan narrated it beautifully.“I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.”