A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway

-

Farewell to War, Baby

This book is loosely based on Hemingway’s own life.  Set in WWI, American Frederic Henry is an ambulance driver in the Italian Army. At one point, his buddy Rinaldi, introduces him to Catherine Barkley, an English nurse’s aide.  She’s on the rebound from the death of her fiancé and she’s a bit of a basket case.  One second she’s slapping Frederic when he leans forward to kiss her, the next minute she’s offering him a kiss.  He takes her up on the offer, and their lips barely part before she’s talking about their future life together. Glenn Close in Fatal Attractioncomes to mind.  It’s almost spooky, but he plays along until he has to leave for duty. After receiving a beastly war wound to the knee, Frederic is sent to a hospital in Milan where he encounters Catherine again.  He falls in love with her during his recuperation time and Catherine becomes pregnant. Unfortunately, after a few months Frederic must return to his unit, and they are once again separated.  Of course, he’d rather be with Catherine, especially when the Italians started executing officers involved in an unfortunate retreat.  That is when Frederic says “farewell” and escapes in a river.  He soon says “hello” to his Catherine as they meet again.  Life is good.  But before all is said and done, Frederic must say two more “farewells.”
I liked the book, but wasn't really beguiled with the writing; it seemed a tad stiff, at times terse and choppy, which is, of course, Hemingway’s signature style.  Rinaldi also irked me.  He constantly threw the word “baby” into his conversations. “How are you, baby?”[1]  “Don’t be angry, baby.”[2]“Take your pants off, baby.”[3]Shave his head and stick a lollipop in his mouth and you have Telly Savalas saying “Who loves ya, baby?” in the 1970's detective drama Kojak.  I couldn't wipe that image out of my head.
My husband thoroughly enjoyed this book.  He not only liked the descriptive war scenes, but surprisingly, he also liked the love story—more than I did. 

There’s only us two and in the world there’s all the rest of them.

Ernest Hemingway,  A Farewell to Arms  (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1929; reprint, New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1957), 134.

Nothing ever happens to the brave.They die of course. But only once.

Ernest Hemingway,  A Farewell to Arms  (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1929; reprint, New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1957), 134.

God knows I had not wanted to fall in love with her. I had not wanted to fall in love with any one. But God knows I had…

Ernest Hemingway,  A Farewell to Arms  (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1929; reprint, New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1957), 90.


Happy Reading,

Annette

[1]Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms(New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1929; reprint, New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1957), 62.

[2]Ibid., 65.

[3]Ibid., 160.







Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

-
Image
 Remains of the Day This book immediately struck me as a character study. I didn’t expect much action, and predictably, didn’t get much.  Mostly it was about getting inside a stuffy, dignified butler’s head, listening to his internal dialogue, his thought process, and his many recollections of a thirty-year career, annnnnnnnnnd—I LOVED IT!!  💗 It had such depth and insight that I couldn’t wait to return each day to see what Mr. Stevens would reveal and what the outcome of his quest would be.  I was not disappointed.  In fact, the book stirred me more than I expected.  Yes, those tears fell freely when I wasn’t looking.  It snuck up on me—all of it, all of Mr. Stevens’ days that he shared moved me in some way.   I’m not sure this book is for everyone.  "Boring" is how one friend described it as he politely set it aside. BUT I truly believe if my friend got into his Zen mode and picked it up again, he might—if not quite LOVE it—at least appreciate it.  In my opinion this book
Read more

Liebster Award

-
Image
Ich Liebe the Liebster Award!   In July Marianne from Let’s Read blog nominated me for the Liebster Award , an award given to smaller blogs.   I was extremely honored, especially coming from Marianne, whose book review blog I just love.   My beautiful mother passed away at the time Marianne nominated me, and although I already had posts scheduled in advanced, I wasn’t in the mood to do much, even the simple rules of the award below…until now.   Rules for the award: 1.    Thank the amazing blogger who nominated you.  (check) 2.    Answer the 11 questions the nominator provided (answer on your blog.) (check, see below) 3.    Nominate 11 other bloggers who have less than 200 followers. 4.    Post 11 different questions for your nominees to answer on their blogs. (check, see below) 5.    Contact your nominees to let them know that you've nominated them.  (check) Unfortunately, I really got hung up on #3 (Nominate 11 other bloggers who have less than 200 fol
Read more

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

-
Image
  You Go, Girl! Pure love—that’s what I felt about this book!  It’s smart, witty, and emboldening! I don’t know how many countless times I cheered or chuckled.   A female chemist struggles to rise above the chauvinistic male domination of the 1960s and live life on her terms despite ingrained oppression of women.  Hooray for this feminist heroine who points out that just because women’s bodies are smaller than men's doesn’t mean their brains are!   I fell in love with brilliant Elizabeth and her support system:  her impressively  smart daughter Mad; her straightforward neighbor Harriet; her kind-hearted producer Walter, the irreverent Reverend Wakely; and her obstetrician/rower Dr. Mason. Oh, and let’s not forget Six-Thirty, her beloved dog!   I would definitely be one of Elizabeth’s devoted fans of her show,  Supper at Six !  If my kids were still at home, I’d mimic Elizabeth and tell them, “Children, set the table. Your mother needs a moment to herself.” (Even though I’m not the
Read more