A Moveable Feast was published posthumously by Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, on 5 May 1964, three years after Hemingway’s death on 2 July 1961. The book is a memoir of his years as a young writer in Paris from 1921 to 1926 — the years in which he transformed himself from a newspaper correspondent into the most influential prose stylist of the twentieth century. Hemingway worked on the manuscript intermittently from 1957 until his death, and the text was prepared for publication by his widow, Mary Hemingway, and Scribner’s editor L.H. Brague. A “restored edition,” incorporating previously deleted material and editorial revisions by Hemingway’s grandson Seán Hemingway, was published in 2009.
The Book
A Moveable Feast is not a conventional memoir. It is a sequence of loosely connected sketches — some only a few pages long — evoking the sights, sounds, and rhythms of Hemingway’s Paris. The sketches describe his daily routine of writing in cafés (the Closerie des Lilas, the Café des Amateurs), his struggles with poverty and ambition, his fishing trips and horse-racing excursions, and above all his encounters with the remarkable group of writers and artists who populated the Left Bank in the 1920s.
The portraits of literary figures are the book’s glory — and its most controversial element. Gertrude Stein is depicted as generous and then imperious, her literary judgment clouded by ego. Ezra Pound is shown as selflessly devoted to the promotion of other writers’ work. Ford Madox Ford is gently mocked for his physical ungainliness and social pretensions. Scott Fitzgerald is presented in a devastating portrait of talent undermined by alcoholism, insecurity, and a destructive marriage to Zelda — chapters that have generated decades of scholarly dispute about their accuracy and fairness.
The prose is among Hemingway’s finest: lyrical, sensory, precisely observed, and suffused with a nostalgic tenderness unusual for a writer whose public persona emphasised toughness. The famous opening — “If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast” — has entered the language. The descriptions of food, wine, weather, and landscape achieve a sensory immediacy that makes the book as much a travel classic as a literary memoir.
Composition and Editorial History
Hemingway began the memoir in 1957, working from notebooks and a trunk of manuscripts recovered from the Ritz Hotel in Paris (where he had left them in 1928). The composition coincided with the worst period of his physical and mental decline — depression, paranoia, failing health, and the electroconvulsive therapy at the Mayo Clinic that devastated his memory. Whether the book’s persistent mood of lost happiness reflects the Paris years or Hemingway’s own awareness that his best days were behind him is a question that haunts every reading.
Mary Hemingway’s editorial choices in preparing the 1964 text have been debated ever since. The 2009 “restored edition,” edited by Seán Hemingway, added previously omitted material (including passages about Hemingway’s first wife, Hadley) and rearranged some chapters. The two editions offer meaningfully different reading experiences. Most scholars prefer the 1964 text for its tighter construction; the 2009 edition is valued for its more complete picture of Hemingway’s intentions.
Literary Significance
A Moveable Feast has become one of the most influential literary memoirs ever written. Its evocation of Paris in the 1920s has shaped the popular imagination of that era more than any other single work. Every subsequent memoir of literary apprenticeship — from Vivian Gornick’s Fierce Attachments to Patti Smith’s Just Kids — operates in its shadow.
The book is also a masterclass in the art of prose memoir. Hemingway’s method — concrete sensory detail, understated emotion, carefully selected anecdotes — set the standard for modern literary nonfiction. The blend of personal narrative, literary portraiture, and atmospheric writing created a template that writers continue to follow.
For collectors, the book offers something unique: a window into the world that produced the books they collect. The descriptions of Hemingway writing at the Closerie des Lilas, of Sylvia Beach’s Shakespeare and Company bookshop, and of the struggling young writer who would become the most famous American novelist alive — these passages resonate with anyone who holds a Hemingway first edition in their hands.
Publication History
First edition (1964, Scribner’s): Published 5 May 1964. First printing identified by the Scribner’s seal and “A” on the copyright page.
Dust jacket: Features a charming line drawing of a Parisian café scene. The jacket is relatively durable compared to earlier Hemingway jackets.
UK first edition: Published by Jonathan Cape, London, 1964. Fine copies in jacket bring £200–£500.
Restored edition (2009, Scribner’s): Edited by Seán Hemingway, incorporating deleted passages and alternative versions. Collected at $30–$80 for first printings.
Collecting A Moveable Feast
First edition, first printing (1964, Scribner’s):
- Fine/Fine in dust jacket: $500–$2,000
- Near Fine in jacket: $200–$500
- Without jacket: $50–$100
Value trajectory (2016–2026): Approximately 1.5–2× for fine copies in jacket. The book’s enduring popularity as a gift and travel companion maintains steady demand.
The 1964 first edition is one of the most accessible entry points into Hemingway collecting — a major work by a giant of American letters at a price point within reach of most collectors. It is also, simply, one of the most enjoyable books Hemingway ever wrote.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the 1964 or 2009 edition preferred by collectors? The 1964 edition has bibliographic priority and is the standard collecting target. The 2009 restored edition is interesting but has not displaced the original in the market.
Was this really the last book Hemingway worked on? He worked on the manuscript until close to his death. The exact state of the text at his death is debated — Mary Hemingway and Scribner’s editors made choices about organisation and inclusion that Hemingway may or may not have endorsed.
Why is this so affordable compared to the novels? Posthumous publication limits the possibility of signed copies, and the large first printing ensures ample supply. However, the book’s canonical status and its role as a gateway to Hemingway collecting sustain healthy demand.