“I became involved when Cliff Blake, from NH PBS, reached out to me because my books, Hemingway’s Paris: A Writer’s City in Words and Images (2015) and Hemingway’s Havana: A Reflection of the Writer’s Life in Cuba (2018), Skyhorse Publishing, NYC, surfaced while he was looking for a New Hampshire connection to Hemingway.
After a meeting with Cliff, here in New Castle where I live, we both felt that the Hemingway that Ken Burns is portraying in his film (a more sensitive and artful and intimate person) is the same as the man I attempted to portray in my books. In fact, my agent, Peter Riva of International Transactions and interestingly the grandson of Marlene Dietrich, was attracted to my Paris manuscript because he felt the words and the photographs captured the essence of the Hemingway that his grandmother knew (and loved) so well. Needless to say, I’m fortunate and thankful to have his support!
What I learned through writing my books is that the actual city of Paris (the river, the statues, the cafes, the art, the architecture), and his first wife, Hadley, and the Cuban people he embraced (and that embraced him)…they all provided a lovely sense of unconditional love and support for his craft to flourish.”
Wheeler’s books include Hemingway’s Paris: A Writer’s City in Words and Images and Hemingway’s Havana: A Reflection of the Writer’s Life in Cuba. The books are available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and local Indie book stores. Also available in e-book format.