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Quick answer: If you loved The Paris Wife, try Circling the Sun, Love and Ruin, A Moveable Feast, The Sun Also Rises, Mrs. Hemingway and Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald. Each one is a rich historical novel about the women behind famous men, or the glamour and heartbreak of the 1920s.
Paula McLain's novel tells the story of Hadley Richardson, the first wife of Ernest Hemingway. They marry young and move to Jazz Age Paris, surrounded by the likes of Gertrude Stein and F. Scott Fitzgerald. As his fame grows, their marriage comes under strain. Readers love its period atmosphere and Hadley's quiet strength. These books share its famous figures, its literary glamour and its honest look at marriage.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Woman at the center | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Circling the Sun | Paula McLain | Beryl Markham | readers who want more McLain |
| Love and Ruin | Paula McLain | Martha Gellhorn | readers who want more Hemingway |
| A Moveable Feast | Ernest Hemingway | Hadley Richardson | readers who want Hemingway's own account |
| The Sun Also Rises | Ernest Hemingway | Brett Ashley | readers who want the novel from these years |
| Mrs. Hemingway | Naomi Wood | All four wives | readers who want all the wives |
| Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald | Therese Anne Fowler | Zelda Fitzgerald | readers who love the Jazz Age |
| Call Me Zelda | Erika Robuck | Zelda Fitzgerald | readers who want a different view of Zelda |
| Loving Frank | Nancy Horan | Mamah Borthwick | readers who like scandalous affairs |
| The Aviator's Wife | Melanie Benjamin | Anne Morrow Lindbergh | readers who like complicated marriages |
| The Swans of Fifth Avenue | Melanie Benjamin | Babe Paley | readers who like society gossip |
| The Only Woman in the Room | Marie Benedict | Hedy Lamarr | readers who love forgotten women |
| The Great Gatsby | F. Scott Fitzgerald | Daisy Buchanan | readers who want the Jazz Age classic |
| Everybody Behaves Badly | Lesley M.M. Blume | Several | readers who want true history |
| Hemingway's Girl | Erika Robuck | Mariella | readers who like Key West |
| The Personal Librarian | Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray | Belle da Costa Greene | readers who love real-life history |
1. Circling the Sun by Paula McLain
The pioneering aviator grows up in colonial Kenya.
Best for: readers who want more McLain.
2. Love and Ruin by Paula McLain
A war reporter becomes Hemingway's third wife.
Best for: readers who want more Hemingway.
3. A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway
Hemingway's memoir recalls his early years in Paris.
Best for: readers who want Hemingway's own account.
4. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
American and British expatriates travel from Paris to Spain.
Best for: readers who want the novel from these years.
5. Mrs. Hemingway by Naomi Wood
The novel tells of each of Hemingway's four marriages.
Best for: readers who want all the wives.
6. Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler
A Southern belle marries F. Scott Fitzgerald and fights for her own identity.
Best for: readers who love the Jazz Age.
7. Call Me Zelda by Erika Robuck
A nurse cares for Zelda in a psychiatric clinic.
Best for: readers who want a different view of Zelda.
8. Loving Frank by Nancy Horan
A woman leaves her family for the architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
Best for: readers who like scandalous affairs.
9. The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin
Charles Lindbergh's wife builds her own career in the air.
Best for: readers who like complicated marriages.
10. The Swans of Fifth Avenue by Melanie Benjamin
Truman Capote befriends New York socialites, then betrays them.
Best for: readers who like society gossip.
11. The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict
A movie star escapes her Austrian husband and invents new technology.
Best for: readers who love forgotten women.
12. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
A mysterious millionaire pursues the woman he has always loved.
Best for: readers who want the Jazz Age classic.
13. Everybody Behaves Badly by Lesley M.M. Blume
The true story of Hemingway's trip to Spain and his first novel.
Best for: readers who want true history.
14. Hemingway's Girl by Erika Robuck
A young woman works in Hemingway's home in 1930s Florida.
Best for: readers who like Key West.
15. The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
J.P. Morgan's librarian hides her identity as a Black woman.
Best for: readers who love real-life history.
How to Choose
Stay with McLain for Love and Ruin, which covers Hemingway's third marriage, or Circling the Sun if you want a story without him. If you want the facts, A Moveable Feast gives Hemingway's own memory of this time, and Everybody Behaves Badly gives a biographer's view. Fans of the Jazz Age should read Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald next, as Zelda and Scott appear in The Paris Wife too. If you like reading about women eclipsed by famous husbands, Loving Frank and The Aviator's Wife are both excellent. Mrs. Hemingway is the natural choice if you were curious about the women who came after Hadley.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Paris Wife about?
It tells the story of Hadley Richardson's marriage to Ernest Hemingway in 1920s Paris.
Is The Paris Wife a true story?
It is historical fiction based on real people and events, though conversations and details are imagined.
How many wives did Hemingway have?
Four: Hadley Richardson, Pauline Pfeiffer, Martha Gellhorn and Mary Welsh.
Does The Paris Wife cover the end of the marriage?
Yes. It follows Hadley through the affair with Pauline Pfeiffer and the divorce.
What should I read next?
A Moveable Feast is the natural companion, since it is Hemingway's own view of those years.