He traveled across the Atlantic on the Polish passenger ship “Jagiello.” During this trip, the writer fell in love once again, this time with 19-year-old Adriana Ivancich. This platonic love inspired him to write a novel, “Across the River and into the Trees,” which was not well received. The unfavorable reviews prompted him to write the short story “The Old Man and the Sea,” which he considered the best thing he could create in his life. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for the short story in 1953.
