Beautiful Exiles

When writer Martha Gellhorn first meets famous author Ernest Hemingway in a bar in Key West in 1936 she is thrilled. Their instant rapport results in an eight-year relationship (marriage in 1940, divorce in 1945) recounted here from Gellhorn's point of view. Her independent spirit and passion for writing at first enchant Hemingway, but later this dedication to her craft annoys and threatens him. There is no way Gellhorn could twist herself into the kind of wife he wants, and she slowly realizes this as she seeks to combine marriage with work in the all-male world of war correspondents. Gellhorn holds on to her sense of self even when the prominent writer deteriorates into a drunken bully. Kirsten Potter's attractive voice, crisp enunciation, and spot-on pacing make this a pleasure to hear. The strength and energy of her delivery reflect the liveliness of the prose and Gellhorn's commitment to truth and her determination to write it.