Non-spoiler review: For Whom The Bell Tolls, Ernest…
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Non-spoiler review: For Whom The Bell Tolls, Ernest Hemingway
I just finished this book. It is a combination war story and love story with themes including killing, death, moral ambivalence, revolutionary politics, civil war, cultural relations and love. I found it to be a great work with very interesting characters and a unique plot that slowly builds, and I do mean slowly (at times), towards a powerful and classic ending. Hemingway's writing is very straightforward and uncomplicated. He writes like a professional and experienced broadcaster reads the news; with a seriousness and diplomatic approach to the job, without going overboard in either a fancy prosaic manner nor in a technical, complicated way. Hemingway sets the scene in a simple, uncomplicated way. There is no "fluff". There are no shenanigans. At the same time, the characters are complex and have depth that drive the story and your interest as a reader.
I would rate the book 8.5/10 and place it amongst the greatest works of all-time. Not to cast doubt on the foregoing but I would not necessarily call it a must-read and that is for one reason: I do not think it is original in the sense that the story, both of war and love, have been told many times, and I have no doubt any serious literature scholar could find a better work on either (or perhaps both) topics; but this work certainly adds to both traditions in a meaningful way.
#entertainment
I just finished this book. It is a combination war story and love story with themes including killing, death, moral ambivalence, revolutionary politics, civil war, cultural relations and love. I found it to be a great work with very interesting characters and a unique plot that slowly builds, and I do mean slowly (at times), towards a powerful and classic ending. Hemingway's writing is very straightforward and uncomplicated. He writes like a professional and experienced broadcaster reads the news; with a seriousness and diplomatic approach to the job, without going overboard in either a fancy prosaic manner nor in a technical, complicated way. Hemingway sets the scene in a simple, uncomplicated way. There is no "fluff". There are no shenanigans. At the same time, the characters are complex and have depth that drive the story and your interest as a reader.
I would rate the book 8.5/10 and place it amongst the greatest works of all-time. Not to cast doubt on the foregoing but I would not necessarily call it a must-read and that is for one reason: I do not think it is original in the sense that the story, both of war and love, have been told many times, and I have no doubt any serious literature scholar could find a better work on either (or perhaps both) topics; but this work certainly adds to both traditions in a meaningful way.
#entertainment
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