Since 1990, focusing on the Michigan influence in Ernest Hemingway's work, especially the
Nick Adams Stories.
Annual Hemingway Weekends in Petoskey features speakers, readings, exhibits, and tours
of Northern Michigan sites where the
Nobel Prize-winning author spent his
boyhood summers.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM
THE 2010 FALL CONFERENCE

Dining At Hemingway’s Table

Seventy-four people attended the 21st annual Hemingway weekend ―Dining at Hemingway’s Table, eleven of them first-time participants. It was a glorious weekend in Petoskey from October 15 through 17, with the last of the fall colors as background to the presentations, tours, and excellent food (and drink.) Conference headquarters again was the Odawa Hotel, and conferees reported all A's on very generous meals,comfortable conference facilities, helpful staff, convenient parking, and shuttle service to downtown Petoskey. President Mike Federspiel greeted attendees and introduced guests and the two scholarship students for this year, Janet Chimples, a grad assistant from John Carroll University in Cleveland and Andrew Bushor, a recent graduate of Central Michigan University.

FOCUS ON FOOD

It was almost too much. We dined and wined…and dined…and dined! Two meals were based on menus from Craig Boreth’s The Hemingway Cookbook, and the chefs at The Odawa were fantastic in following these recipes and others we requested in serving our group. Friday night featured a beef stew that Gregorio Fuentes often prepared for Hemingway aboard the Pilar. Dessert was Mary’s Lime Pie, a recipe that Valerie Hemingway had received years ago from Mary Hemingway. Saturday evening we enjoyed the Roast Chicken dinner, a menu from the Rendezvous-des-Mariniers Restaurant in Paris where Jake Barnes and Bill Gorton dine in The Sun Also Rises, also described in Boreth’s book. Saturday’s lunch at the Crooked Tree Arts Center was a delightful tasting of several cuisines from countries where EH had lived or travelled. From Cuban sandwiches to Italian pasta to Spanish gazpacho to French paté and even spaghetti with pork and beans, which Nick Adams apparently enjoyed - we tried it all. It was a time to sip wines too as we perused the art exhibit there. Sunday morning for our breakfast we enjoyed Grace Hemingway's teacakes and apricot preserves. You'll find the recipes for the Teacakes and Miss Mary's Lime Pie in this issue.

Dining With Nick Adams
A QUIZ

Pinehurst and Shangri-La

Valerie Hemingway
Speaks of Ernest's Delight
in Food and Drink

Valerie Hemingway addressed a crowded auditorium at the Crooked Tree Arts Center on Saturday afternoon. She spoke of how she learned the joy of eating from her former employer Ernest Hemingway. Valerie began by describing the rather sparse fare she experienced as a child growing up in an Irish convent school following World War II. It consisted of potatoes, breads, occasional bits of pork or lamb and fish. Such treats as cookies and fruit cake were only for the holidays. She described her first taste of Guinness as a girl—a sticky black substance which she spat out immediately. Little did she know that years later she would work for that famous Irish brewery.

It was in the summer of 1959 in Pamplona, Spain, that Valerie first met Ernest Hemingway. At his invitation she joined his group for drinks and dinner at the local cafes. There she discovered that there was more to dining than simply eating: selecting the best of local gastronomy, sipping local wines, and enjoying the camaraderie of those at the table. At the end of the Fiesta, Ernest invited Valerie to join him and Mary at the home of Bill and Ann Davis, near Malaga. There an elaborate birthday party Mary planned for Ernest brought guests from around the world. She served a myriad of exotic foods, red wine, champagne, and birthday cake. Mary also provided a shooting gallery, and later, fireworks that started a small fire. The firemen who responded then joined the party. For Ernest, she said, the more people enjoying the food, drink and each others’ company the better.

At the end of the summer, Valerie joined Ernest and Mary in Cuba where she worked as Ernest’s secretary while living with them at the Finca. Until then Valerie knew little or nothing about cooking. Since Sunday was the cook’s day off, Mary prepared meals herself on that day. One Sunday, Mary invited Valerie into the kitchen and offered to teach her how to cook a few basic foods. At first it proved difficult to follow Mary’s memorized recipes. Eventually, however, Valerie mastered several of Ernest and Mary’s favorites, including the lime pie that conference participants had enjoyed the night before.

2010 Writing Contest
Echoes of Hemingway

The writing competition at the annual Michigan Hemingway Society conference once again highlighted the talents and creativity of our members. Judges Diane Fox and Susan Lightcap were pleased with the entries and impressed by the clever application of the weekend theme, Dining at Hemingway’s Table. The broad scope of the topic and the seemingly unlimited approaches made for a challenging contest. Top honors went to Jerri Gillette for her story. And congratulaions also go out to our second and third place winners, respectively Joe Meany and Elizabeth Sugas. Ironically, our first and second place winners both used a flashback to a military setting. All three stories, of course, focused on food; however, our third place winner chose activities near and dear to Hemingway: camping, fishing, and eating fresh trout. Winners received gift certificates to McLean & Eakin Booksellers in Petoskey. We thank all who submitted writings, and we eagerly await next year’s contest submissions!

Click on the Following Links to Read the Winning Papers

First Place by Jerri Gillette • • Second Place by Joe Meany • • Third Place by Elizabeth Sugas

The Hemingways' Summer Vacations

Saturday evening President Mike Federspiel kept our membership spellbound as he showed slides from his book. He focused on the Hemingways being a "typical" family of the time who built a cottage in northern Michigan and enjoyed escaping from the city to this area for their summer days while their children were growing up. Many pictures shown were those that Mike had which were not in the final cut for the book. Earlier that afternoon he and Valerie Hemingway both were at our local bookseller McLean & Eakin signing their books for MHS members and others.

MHS President Mike Federspiel’s new book, Picturing Hemingway’s Michigan, was released in May 2010. Many positive reviews have been posted on facebook. Check out this recent review from NPR. The author's profits from the sales of this book will benefit the Michigan Hemingway Endowment at our partner institution, the Clarke Historical Library of Central Michigan University. Using the links below will also benefit MHS.

Click here to order this book from McLean and Eakin Booksellers in Petoskey, Michigan.
Other books about Hemingway as well as books about Northern Michigan are also available from
McLean and Eakin

"UP IN MICHIGAN" In 2012

The international Hemingway Society 2012 conference will be in Petoskey June 17 – 22, 2012, and the Michigan Hemingway Society has been busy making local arrangements. The conference sessions will be held at the historic Bay View Community with rooms set aside at the Terrace Inn, Bay View Inn, and Perry Hotel. Planned activities include tours of regional sites associated with Hemingway and the Nick Adams stories, and a sunset boat cruise at the Straits of Mackinac. An opening reception is planned at the historic Perry Hotel where Hemingway once stayed, as well as a closing banquet at the beautiful Bay Harbor Yacht Club. For more information see the conference web site www.hem2012.com. As the date gets closer volunteer and sponsorship opportunities will be available.