At The Vanguard

In her latest novel, Paula McLain explores the remarkable life of the trailblazing war correspondent Martha Gellhorn.

In December 1936, 28-year-old Martha Gellhorn ran into her literary hero, Ernest Hemingway, reading his mail in a Key West bar. He was about to go to the war in Spain to write for the North American Newspaper Alliance. Nine years his junior, with two published books and some reporting under her belt, Gellhorn was not only struck by Hemingway’s influence and undeniable allure, but also by the shimmering opportunity to do something altogether extraordinary. Without any real plan except to stand with him and other left-leaning writers against Franco and Fascism, Gellhorn launched into her first war, and set the course for the rest of her life.