The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Sigh…I was bored through almost all of this book. I had absolutely NO interest in the characters – mostly because they were of no interest themselves. Their conversations were incredibly shallow & simplistic. All they did was drink, argue after getting too drunk, and pretty much wonder when they would get their next drink!
Set in post-war Europe, following up to 4 guys & one..well..slutty gal meandering through France & Spain, probably the best part of the book were the detailed descriptions of the places they were in – especially the few days that were spent fishing. The tale is told in the first person by one of the men, Jake, who one would hope would be giving us some insight and observations into the characters around him as each scene unfolds, but no. That happens maybe half a dozen times, otherwise I was always left wondering..”so?”
(Book 21 of 52)
One reviewer on Goodreads said that it seems more like Hemingway was writing a screenplay for a movie with detailed descriptions not of the characters so much as of the places and scenery. Very well put. If you want a vivid picture of Europe after World War I and the running of the bulls festival & bullfighting in general – this is it.
Moving on this week to something more current – and hopefully more interesting!
Trees & Flowers & Birds! 
I liked this book. One of my favourite Hemingway reads. I like all the pretentious, diffident banter. Reminds me, in an odd way, of Kerouac’s On The Road. Lost young minds, hedonistic.
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I haven’t read this book so I can’t comment on it. I’ve been struggling though some classics too. I read Virginia Woolf’s “To The Lighthouse” last month. I almost quit because of my 50-page-rule but I plodded on to the end. I’m kind of glad I did as I enjoyed some of the descriptions and really like the way the author played with the passage of time in the end section.
I’m working on “All Quiet on the Western Front” now. I don’t know what it is about the classics that make me almost feel required to complete what I started. Probably not a bad thing, all in all.
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That’s how I feel too Robin – some obligation to see it through but it certainly is plodding along to get there! Clearly don’t have what it takes to fully appreciate good literature.
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