Martha Gellhorn: A Life

Martha Gellhorn did not like that her accomplishments were overshadowed by having been Ernest Hemingway's third wife. She would most like to be known for her now-forgotten novels. What she deserves to be remembered for is her ground-breaking war reporting that paved the way for women to report from conflict zones.

This biography is a thorough look at Gellhorn's life, with care taken to center her life and activities within the history and politics of the time. And with Gellhorn being a regular visitor to the Roosevelt White House, breaking into journalism with reports on the living conditions of mill workers in North Carolina and Massachusetts during the Depression, being on the ground in Spain during the Spanish Civil War and reporting show more during the Second World War, including being among the first reporters on the beaches on D-Day, this makes for interesting reading. She traveled all over Europe during the last days of the war, including riding through Italy with the soldiers fighting and a post-liberation visit to the Dachau concentration camp. Later, she'd visit both Israel and try to get a pass to report on the Vietnam War.

The book bogs down in the final third, when Gellhorn's life becomes less about her career and more about her disappointments with aging and relationships. She was not a good mother and when the book turned to detailing things like how many times she humiliated her son or the time her cats peed on the sofa, I found my love for this detailed book waning. I'd recommend it for the first two-thirds and suggest skipping the rest. She was an important historical figure, but certainly not an unproblematic one. show less

Excellent biography of Martha Gellhorn, war correspondent, novelist, world traveller. Gellhorn was a fascinating woman, never happier than when she was in the thick of things, observing and describing world-changing events. She never got the hang of ordinary living, was bored or unsettled without a war to visit. As a journalist she abhorred what she referred to as "objective bullshit", believing that there was a right and wrong side to every conflict, and that it was her job to separate the bastards from the decent people. Although she had many close friendships with both men and women over the years, she could be terribly unkind if she perceived a lack of loyalty, or if someone failed to continue to stimulate her. Her romantic show more attachments routinely ended badly, and her relationship with her adopted son was a disaster until very late in her life. A fascinating woman, from this distance. I doubt that I would have been comfortable in her presence. The book is well written, suffering slightly from the common biographer's failure to know what to leave out---a little too heavy on relatively minor details. Recommended reading. show less

I got this book from the library after I watched the HBO movie, "Hemingway & Gellhorn" because I wanted to know more about her life. Martha Gellhorn was an intelligent, brave, and ultimately, mostly unhappy woman who deserves to be know for something other than being Ernest Hemingway's third wife. While not always easy to get along with, she was brave and intelligent and held herself up to very high standards (which she, herself, didn't always live up to).

Looking back, her marriage to Hemingway probably never should have happened. They both were too implacable in their own ambitions to make the accommodations necessary for a successful marriage. And quite frankly, from what I've read about Hemingway, I'm not sure that I understand how show more any woman could live with him for very long. As Gelhorn herself said, "He must be a great genius to make up for being such a despicable human being." However, her other relationships with men were also unsuccessful, so perhaps she was one of those people who just should never have married.

The same could probably be said for her non-success at motherhood. The chapter describing her search for a baby to adopt in Italy was disturbingly creepy - sort of like someone shopping for a pet at an animal shelter.

In the end, she was best in extreme situations, describing the affects of war and other disasters on ordinary people in clear-eyed prose. I'm glad I learned more about her & now will be off looking for some of her books to read. show less

Early on, Moorehead talks about June 1932, when Martha rejoins her lover Bertrand de Jouvenel, sailing into le Havre and then taking off together for a walking tour through Germany. She writes, "They drove across France and into Germany. Berchtesgaden reminded Bertrand of Disneyland..."

This is a poorly written book about an unpleasant and very selfish woman. I didn't like the writing and I didn't like Gellhorn, but I did like reading about her most extraordinary life.

I really loved this book. I was entirely charmed with the woman and the writing kept up as well as it could with her despite the fact that she never seemed to rest. She's a woman who celebrates her strength, both physical and emotional.

An amazing life described in a dry way.