A Farewell to Arms

This turned out much better than I thought it would. I now understand how Hemingway came to be considered the titan of the American novel. I only can imagine how surprised and intrigued readers of Henry James (whom I think is unappreciated today) must have been by the approach and verve of Hemingway. I was prepared to loathe the character of Catherine Barcalay: she annoyed me and behaved like...more

This turned out much better than I thought it would. I now understand how Hemingway came to be considered the titan of the American novel. I only can imagine how surprised and intrigued readers of Henry James (whom I think is unappreciated today) must have been by the approach and verve of Hemingway. I was prepared to loathe the character of Catherine Barcalay: she annoyed me and behaved like no woman I ever knew. I do believe Hemingway may not have understood women well, and it bothered me that Hemingway took this fragile, broken, brittle woman and portrayed her so flatly in the first half of the novel. She could have been a more compelling and poignant character than Hemingway cast her. In this current time of stupid warfare, this 80 year old novel remains timely. I will read Hemingway again.   hide

This book did not make a ginormous impression on me, as have a few others, but I do cherish the time that I spent reading it. The contrast between Henry and his acquaintences is amazing; they are looking for the cheap, the good, and the easy, while Henry searches (and settles) for the exquisite, the excellent and the rare, which he finds mainly in Catherine. Henry is seen as one with standards...more

This book did not make a ginormous impression on me, as have a few others, but I do cherish the time that I spent reading it. The contrast between Henry and his acquaintences is amazing; they are looking for the cheap, the good, and the easy, while Henry searches (and settles) for the exquisite, the excellent and the rare, which he finds mainly in Catherine. Henry is seen as one with standards that are too high, and thus he cannot enjoy the "good life." Also interesting: Catherine, who searched for and found the exquisite, the excellent and the rare in Henry, is looked upon by her friends as pretty much a whore. Interesting perspective of how men and women were--however, in some cases still are--seen.   hide

definately a great book, gives a great picture of the time, however, don't read it if you are looking for a pick-me-up. Classic Hemungway

People will say it's a story oF love and war,Yes both are very important themes in the novel.Becuase it is written about First WORLD WAR and its greater part deals with experiences of Henry as army officer and his love affair with Cathrine, a nurse.But to me it's also a novel of Death.Protagnist Henry tries to overcome every hurdle which comes between the two lovers.He escapes from war,...more

People will say it's a story oF love and war,Yes both are very important themes in the novel.Becuase it is written about First WORLD WAR and its greater part deals with experiences of Henry as army officer and his love affair with Cathrine, a nurse.But to me it's also a novel of Death.Protagnist Henry tries to overcome every hurdle which comes between the two lovers.He escapes from war, reunites with Catherine but death takes away catherine, love of his from him during childbirth. That proves that death is the ultimate reality.I also think it's one of the best novels , i have ever read about war.   hide

On the back of the book it says, "The best American novel to emerge from World War I." That doesn't speak well for the rest of the American novels because this book was very weak. Most of the book is incredibly slow moving and boring and Hemingway's characters all have such a fake vibe to them. The dialogue is strange, approaching insane, and the ending is one of the worst written endings I've...more

On the back of the book it says, "The best American novel to emerge from World War I." That doesn't speak well for the rest of the American novels because this book was very weak. Most of the book is incredibly slow moving and boring and Hemingway's characters all have such a fake vibe to them. The dialogue is strange, approaching insane, and the ending is one of the worst written endings I've ever read. I don't know why anyone thinks so highly of Hemingway or his writing style. This just continues the sad trend of classics being very and overrated and disappointing. A Farewell to Arms took about 7 hours and 45 minutes to read.   hide

Read it with an open mind. I was not ready for the ending, but then on realized that the story helped me accept the harsh realities of life. It made me admire how a love story bloomed in the midst of war and how the characters showed their affection. When I finished the book, it gave me a new perspective with rain. Go read the book and see for yourself.

Disgusting male chauvinist crap.

Hemingway is never a joy to me and A Farewell to Arms is no exception. The book is sort of an ego trip for the main character trying to prove that he is really an OK guy and, ultimately, a hero. Of course, this hero-trial starts with him as an ambulance driver in the war and then proceeds through his desertion from the medical corps to fathering a child with a nurse and then concocting a trip to...more

Hemingway is never a joy to me and A Farewell to Arms is no exception. The book is sort of an ego trip for the main character trying to prove that he is really an OK guy and, ultimately, a hero. Of course, this hero-trial starts with him as an ambulance driver in the war and then proceeds through his desertion from the medical corps to fathering a child with a nurse and then concocting a trip to the US in order that the child he fathered won't be a bastard. Hemingway's style is alright and he sprinkles in enough Italian to make the whole deal seem plausible, but the story is just ridiculous, teaching little more than "lie and cheat because everybody else does, too." Subjectivist logic never built a civilization.   hide

Hemingway, as with much of his writing, offers us a complex, human story. This one focuses on love, WWI and the tragedies that come. The novel is quite well written and shows why his minimalistic style works so well. be prepared for some amazing descriptions as well though. My biggest criticism of the book, however, is the ending. It felt a little too predictable--or at least, I feel he gave...more

Hemingway, as with much of his writing, offers us a complex, human story. This one focuses on love, WWI and the tragedies that come. The novel is quite well written and shows why his minimalistic style works so well. be prepared for some amazing descriptions as well though. My biggest criticism of the book, however, is the ending. It felt a little too predictable--or at least, I feel he gave it away a little too soon. Even that, however, isn't enough to detract from the style and quality of this book. An excellent read with many realizations by the narrator that feel relevant today with our current war as they were to him during WWI.   hide