Never too Late to Read Classics discussion

Ernest Hemingway 1899-1961
Nobel Prize winner Ernest Hemingway is seen as one of the great American 20th century novelists, and is known for works like 'A Farewell to Arms' and 'The Old Man and the Sea.'

Ernest Hemingway served in World War I and worked in journalism before publishing his story collection In Our Time. He was renowned for novels like The Sun Also Rises, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls and The Old Man and the Sea, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1953. In 1954, Hemingway won the Nobel Prize. He committed suicide on July 2, 1961, in Ketchum, Idaho.

His Legacy
Hemingway left behind an impressive body of work and an iconic style that still influences writers today. His personality and constant pursuit of adventure loomed almost as large as his creative talent.

A 3 1.2 minute Mini Biography
https://www.biography.com/video/ernes...

Quote: The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.

Number of works: 27? (13? Short Stories) During his lifetime maybe??
I know The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway contains over 49 stories in it. Not really sure where those totals come from.

Please share your thoughts about Ernest Heminway and some fun facts you find interesting.

Our suggested read is The Sun Also Rises

The Sun Also Rises is a 1926 novel by American Ernest Hemingway that portrays American and British expatriates who travel from Paris to the Festival of San Fermín in Pamplona to watch the running of the bulls and the bullfights. (223 pages)

Why is the book called The Sun Also Rises?
The title of Ernest Hemingway's first book is The Sun Also Rises, which comes from a verse in the Bible. The title is an apt depiction both of the despair of the Lost Generation of which Hemingway was a part as well as the potential for optimism in the perpetual rising of the sun.

Please share this suggested read with us.

Thank you for the reminder Karin and Kathy!

Here is the past link from almost 3 years ago when read in 2017

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

I'll be reading this. I read it in the 80s so it will be interesting to re-read now. I liked it then but don't remember much about it except for the bulls.

I’ll try and join you for this one too

I intend to read this later in the month. It’ll be my first Hemingway.

It’s my first Hemingway too :)

This was a great book to read while on holiday! The pace of the story was nice, it didn't get "stuck" anywhere along the way

I haven't started this yet, but I have been meaning to leave a biographic video of Hemingway here. Lesle, this is not to negate the one you initially posted. This video is about 20 minutes long. A few years ago I watched it and enjoyed learning a bit about Hemingway's life. Quite an interesting man! Maybe high school and college students would be more apt to read his works, if they knew how dramatic of a life he led.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLTk7...

I'm a third of the way through my re-read of The Sun Also Rises. I love his descriptions of wandering around Paris; the sights and sounds come through with his writing.

I also laugh quite a bit at his sentences. The book reminded me that there was a contest at one time to write some "really bad Hemingway." I guess it's ended now. Here's a Wikipedia link about it:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interna...

I’ve finished this, his style took me a little time to get used to but I did enjoy it.
I kept questioning if I had missed something as he very subtly suggests some things early on that I thought I had taken the wrong way, only to be more clearly described later in the book (view spoiler)[ Jakes impotence for one (hide spoiler)] I’m still not 100% sure I’ve got this right though, and is this the reason (view spoiler)[Jake and Brett can’t be together (hide spoiler)], or have I missed something else?
I can only imagine how much the war affected this generation and he gives a real sense of the impact to each of the characters in the book, I think a book sticks with me more if the characters are imperfect and you can understand why, but maybe that’s just me.
The only parts I didn’t enjoy were the bull fights, I understand it’s from the time, but it was a little to detailed and gory (no pun intended) for me.

Kathy wrote: "I'm a third of the way through my re-read of The Sun Also Rises. I love his descriptions of wandering around Paris; the sights and sounds come through with his writing.

I also laugh quite a bit at..."

This did make me chuckle, I had no idea about this :)

Georgina wrote: "I’ve finished this, his style took me a little time to get used to but I did enjoy it.
I kept questioning if I had missed something as he very subtly suggests some things early on that I thought I ..."

That's what I'm thinking Georgina.

I'm enjoying the book too. I keep wondering how Hemingway "does it." His writing is very spare but it makes me see the countryside, the bulls, the bar-hopping, and it makes me feel. I'm glad to re-read this.

Kathy wrote: "Georgina wrote: "I’ve finished this, his style took me a little time to get used to but I did enjoy it.
I kept questioning if I had missed something as he very subtly suggests some things early on ..."

I agree completely, he paints a wonderful picture. I’ll definitely read more of his books.

My favourite Hemingway book is The Old Man and the Sea.

I’ll have to read The Old Man and the Sea again. I hated it in high school. I probably didn’t get it.

I find that a lot of the books we read in high school were aimed at readers with more life experience.

I’m about a quarter into this finally and find it relaxing to read. So far book feels like the adventures of Jake Barnes and his friends. Oddly comforting, although i cannot put my finger on why.

My favourite Hemingway is the The Snows of Kilimanjaro

I finished this tonight! Largely because my ebook copy is due back tomorrow night, and I don’t feel like waiting to finish it. Parts drug on and felt very repetitive, but I overall liked the story.

Congrats Samantha I know this was one you were trying to get caught up on. Still on my list...but who knows when I will get to it. Rosemarie is probably right...retirement!

Thanks, Lesle. It’s a pretty quick read once you start it.

There is a very interesting book called Everyone Behaves Badly by Lesley Blume. It is essentially a historical account focusing on Hemmingway, Fitzgeralds and the other expats in their circle. It breaks out the story line of the sun also rises. Let me know what you think if you read it.

Thank you Jennifer. The description of the book under Goodreads seems very interesting. Thank you for the suggestion!

Awesome, thank you, Lesle. I started reading 'The Sun Also Rises' today. I haven't read anything of his yet. I have to admit, I have an up front distaste for Hemingway and Fitzgerald because everytime I start to read their books, I get a sense of pretension that is hard to get past. Especially considering their lifestyle. My favorite ex-pat writer is Henry Miller, who was a little late in the lost generation, but had, in my opinion, 0% pretension. Additionally, when it comes to alcoholic writers, it is hard to beat Bukowski. I agree with the discussion points that I can place myself in the moment to a certain extent. So far, I think his saving grace is his confidence. He just says it, which is somewhat refreshing.

Jennifer The Old Man and the Sea I really enjoyed. When you get time I suggest it. Some people do not seem to get the underlying meanings, which I find sad as they are missing the best part of the novel.

Jennifer, I still need to look into that book you mentioned. I like historical accounts and further readings sometimes.

Thanks, Lesle and Samantha :) I am enjoying the book. I agree with you, Samantha, that the story is oddly comforting. Could you imagine having a life like that though? The world is their oyster, they just go to elegant bars and nightclubs and know people everywhere. I wouldn't want to have that life because I think the high class bohemian lifestyle may subtract from one's character. The scenery is great, especially when he describes the landscape with the mountains and the fog covering the mountain tops. I agree with Paulina, I had to skp over the bullfight. Samantha, I need to check out that youtube biographical video. I just found where they get the title for Everyone behaves badly, on the part where they are watching fireworks...'Everybody behaves badly, I said, given the proper chance.'

One of my coworkers read this book for college years ago and said after she finished she didn’t want to drink alcohol for a while. The over saturation of drinking in the book did make me feel a little over alcohol. After I finished one drink the day I read the second half of the book, I had no desire to open another.

I've read both Rosemarie's and Jazzy's favorites, but my favorite is The Sun Also Rises. I read it a couple of it years ago, but it still brings a sad smile to my lips when remembering. It had a deep effect on me when I read it. I can't exactly say what. But even the remembrance of the story moves me somehow. I think much had to do with the melancholy tone that wrapped up the story.

I just finished the book, I will have to go back and read it again someday because I have been multitasking. Samantha, yes, I can understand that feeling, because the book chronicles the ex-pat lifestyle, which was pretty hard core when you think about it. Especially, Mike in the book, he was really going for broke. Piyangie, I get that - I think the last chapter is my favorite, it was the most enjoyable chapter for me because it was the end of a season, and he did a great job with portraying that.