Simply Hemingway

“A splendid introduction to Hemingway! With a seemingly effortless and graceful compression that Hemingway himself would have admired, Hays fits into this small package, Hemingway’s outsized life and a critical overview of his extensive body of work. Hays writes with great expertise, with a strong sense of what is most important about Hemingway, and with an appreciation for current developments in the field. Here is a brief introduction to Hemingway for our times.”
—Carl Eby, President of the Ernest Hemingway Foundation and Society

Born in Oak Park, Illinois, Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) traveled the globe, transforming his experiences in Paris, Spain, Italy, Africa, Key West, and Cuba into enduring fiction. As an 18-year-old ambulance driver during World War I, he was the first American injured in that conflict to survive, and throughout his life, he was continually involved in extreme exploits, ranging from war correspondent to big-game hunter to four-time-married celebrity. With the publication of The Sun Also Rises in 1926 and A Farewell to Arms three years later, Hemingway established himself as one the most important writers of his generation, a position he largely maintained until his death by suicide in 1961.

In Simply Hemingway, Peter L. Hays presents an engaging chronicle of Hemingway’s life and work, offering key insights into the inspirations for his enduring books and stories. Beginning with his short stories and proceeding chronologically through his major novels and posthumous works, Hays provides a thorough, clear, concise, and easily understandable introduction to this seminal American writer.

Still controversial after more than half a century, Hemingway’s work continues to be taught in nearly every high school, college, and university. With scholarship and verve, Simply Hemingway reveals why this is so.

Reading this book will help you to:

• Gain powerful insights into the inspirations for Hemingway's enduring books and stories
• Uncover a deeper understanding of the themes and ideas in Hemingway's writing
• Develop a true appreciation of the man and his work

In Simply Hemingway, author Peter L. Hays provides a comprehensive overview of Hemingway's life and work, beginning with his short stories and proceeding chronologically through his major novels and posthumous works. This book is a must-read for any aspiring writer or anyone with an appreciation for Hemingway's works. Buy now before the price changes!

Peter L. Hays is professor emeritus of English at the University of California, Davis, from 1966 to 2004. A noted Hemingway scholar, he is the editor of Teaching Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises (2003) and author of A Concordance to Hemingway's In Our Time (1990), The Critical Reception of Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises (2011), and Fifty Years of Hemingway Criticism (2013).