“Hunger Was Good Discipline”
The Community Library presents a new foyer exhibit that explores Hemingway’s time in Paris in the 1920s, and his later years in Ketchum, Idaho—where he shaped his memories into the pages of A Moveable Feast. This exhibit will be on display through December 2025.
Between Two Places
Two periods stand out in Hemingway’s life: his early years in Paris and his later years in Ketchum. In Paris, he kept disciplined writing routines and built friendships that sharpened his craft. In Ketchum, as he approached his sixth decade, he found quiet in the mountains and spent time with close friends, often thinking back to his Paris years. On display are pieces from both worlds: objects surrounding him as he worked on A Moveable Feast, and items from the Paris he was recreating on the page. Together, they link places and moments, revealing the larger story of how Hemingway lived, worked, and remembered.
Paris (1921-1928)
During these years, Hemingway—newly married to Hadley Richardson—began to define himself as a writer. He wrote in cafés, studied painters and authors he admired, and carefully practiced his craft. Most mornings he wrote, and in the afternoons, he walked the city, watching closely and shaping his work with the same discipline. At times, Hemingway used hunger to sharpen his senses. Even when he could afford to eat, he sometimes chose to wait, believing that hunger—real or imagined—kept his mind clear and his writing strong.
Ketchum (1939-1961)
Hemingway first came to Ketchum in 1939 when the Union Pacific Railroad invited him to help promote the new Sun Valley Resort. Returning often for the next two decades, he eventually bought a home here where he would spend the last few years of his life. The Wood River Valley became a place of outdoor pursuits, shared with his close-knit friendships. In this quiet setting, he would often think back to his Paris years, shaping those memories into the pages of A Moveable Feast.
Writing A Moveable Feast
Years after leaving Paris, Hemingway began turning his memories into a book. In Ketchum, he wrote about the streets, cafés, and conversations of his youth, shaping them into vivid scenes. The chapters recall his early writing career. He worked on the manuscript until his death in 1961, leaving it unfinished. Published in 1964, A Moveable Feast joins Paris and Ketchum on the page, linking the places and years shaping Hemingway’s life and work.
Click here to view other exhibits that The Community Library has hosted in its foyer.
