The Ambulance Drivers: Hemingway, Dos Passos, and a Friendship Made and Lost in War, by James McGrath Morris, is a fascinating book about two complex men. This book also provides a vital service. No one reads Dos Passos anymore, unless it is in a college class, or if you are doing you PhD on the USA trilogy.
Hemingway is still well-read. Whatever they hear about Dos is from Hemingway’s cruel rendering of him in his memoir, A Movable Feast. So, Dos gets a much-needed face lift . His work, especially the USA trilogy, was a watershed moment in American letters. Critically, it had a far greater impact than any of Hemingway's work.
But as you read Morris’s well researched book, we see that neither man was a saint. They were difficult people. Both were competitive, embittered, and often nasty. The writing life is difficult. They were often sad and unsatisfied men. Read about it in this fascinating book.
Hemingway is still well-read. Whatever they hear about Dos is from Hemingway’s cruel rendering of him in his memoir, A Movable Feast. So, Dos gets a much-needed face lift . His work, especially the USA trilogy, was a watershed moment in American letters. Critically, it had a far greater impact than any of Hemingway's work.
But as you read Morris’s well researched book, we see that neither man was a saint. They were difficult people. Both were competitive, embittered, and often nasty. The writing life is difficult. They were often sad and unsatisfied men. Read about it in this fascinating book.
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