Sandra Spanier, an English professor at Penn State and editor of the Hemingway Letters Project, will talk about the project to locate, research, and publish the complete collected letters of Ernest Hemingway on Thursday, Nov. 4 at Penn State Great Valley.

Hemingway, who won the 1954 Noble Prize in literature, made a profound impact on modern prose and is an icon in popular culture worldwide.

The collection, being published by Cambridge University Press, is projected to span 17 volumes containing Hemingway’s 6,000 surviving letters. Never intended for publication, his letters track his life story, record experiences that inspired his art, afford insight into his creative process, and reveal a more interesting and complex person than his “tough guy” public persona would suggest.

Spanier will talk about some of these revelations and relate some of the adventures involved in pursuing Hemingway’s trail, which led around the world. 

According to the National Endowment for the Humanities, the thoroughness of the Hemingway Letters Project collection sheds light on the many facets of the author’s life, including how much he earned from his early works, his humor and his insecurities.

“Reading Hemingway’s Mail” will be held at 7 PM in Penn State Great Valley’s Conference Center Building. The event is free to attend, but advance registration is required.