The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Sun Also Rises
Book Review: Expected Better from Hemingway
Summary: 2 Stars
Not such a great book. Boring, characters not well developed. Plot not so great. I expected much more from Hemingway. Much better book by Hemingway is, "For Whom the Bell Tolls".Book Review: Fans must be dazzled by his Nobel Prize
Summary: 1 Stars
I really didn't like this book, and find it hard to see why anyone else would. Sometimes the prose was so simple and repetitive that I felt I was reading a Dick and Jane episode. It was unnerving to come across so many descriptions of something as "nice" or "swell," as if this said anything but that the speaker liked something. I had to force myself to finish it, but I was determined to do so, in case Papa Hemingway could have justified this book later in the text.
The characters: people who couldn't keep their hands off booze. Everywhere they went it was opening another bottle, pouring another drink, many times until they were so drunk the world seemed to be spinning around or they just got plain obnoxious. And Lady Ashley? She must have had a nice body, because her character was simply sluttish. Everyone seemed to be smitten by her, whereas she would cavort with anything in pants.
I'm revisiting Hemingway and Fitzgerald, two noted authors of the first half of the twentieth century. I didn't care for Fitzgerald's obsession with the rich of the Roaring 20s, but at least he could write sentences that flowed. Compared with Ernest's endeavor in this tale, Fitz was a master stylist.
This book of Hemingway's should have lots of appeal to alcoholics, just as so many of Raymond Carver's tales. Pouring drinks, making toasts, opening a bottle, ordering a drink, filling up the glass again, getting "tight" over and over and over, and then speaking nonsense for the rest of the scenes, then congratulating themselves afterward for the "swell" times they had.
What was the point of all this? I have to feel those who rave about the work are just awed by Hemingway's reputation and his Nobel Prize. If this was the work of an unknown, they'd be here trashing it mercilessly.
Boredom, tedium, despair, with only their drunken spells to relieve the emptiness of their lives. I find it hard to believe this book was even published, for either the prose style or the content. Hemingway must have had some friends in the publishing business.
Book Review: Fiesta: The Sun Also Rises
Summary: 4 Stars
'Fiesta: The Sun Also Rises' is the first Hemingway book I read many years ago and is one i've recently re-read. Partly autobiographical and based on his time in Paris, this book showcases Hemingways style perfectly. Short, well crafted sentences that portray the full feeling in any given scene without you realising how deeply you are being affected. You get a sense of feeling of the characters without truly knowing them, which is kind of true of life and a unique talent Hemingway shares. The book builds in tension as the group of friends move to Pamplona for the fiesta and bull running until it reaches it's climax. The end is in no way earth shattering, but a true example of human nature and the mistakes that we make that plague us so. I tend to feel that there are other Hemingway books to try first (Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls) but as the first book of his I read, this has a special place in my heart and is definitely well worth a read to immerse yourself in the style and book that truly made him famous. If you enjoy this then try 'A Moveable Feast' which is the memoirs of his time in Paris and a wonderful read.Book Review: Hard to dispute he was a genius
Summary: 5 Stars
I read this book about 15 times in my youth. The current style of writing contains some "lean" writers so you might take it for granted, but when I was young there was Hemingway and Donald Barthleme. Almost everything you read today was probably influenced by Hemingway or influenced by something else that was influenced by him.
I am a little confused by the rating average of 4 stars though, if you look at the ratings and average them out, they come out lower (is Amazon cheating)?
Book Review: He's the Man!
Summary: 5 Stars
Nobody through history writes like Hemingway. Why? Because he was there. Any author who tries to write about things they don't know should stick to flipping burgers. For instance, how can one write about the military without having been there? With this book, he plants you right into the action and has you drinking with him every step of the way. I could feel my liver failing as I read the book.