A review by dkai
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
4.0
Think Gatsby, but with three men competing...IN SPAIN. While I believe it lacks something that would put it on the level of classic (not sure what), the characters and settings are all fleshed out perfectly with Hemingway's magnificent, concise style. You can essentially some up the whole of the plot as "A group of friends go to Spain to watch bullfighting," but as with most books, the plot makes up only a small portion of the writing. Despite the concise style, you can perfectly picture each scene. The dialogues can occasionally be hard to follow, but it really gives you the feeling of a free-flowing conversation. If you haven't read Hemingway, this is a great introduction to his way of writing. An example:
"Did I know the Chope de Negre? Did I not. I would see him there some time. I certainly would. We would drink another fine together. We certainly would. They started at six o'clock less a quarter in the morning. Would I be up for the depart? I would certainly try to. Would I like him to call me? It was very interesting. I would leave a call at the desk. He would not mind calling me. I could not let him take the trouble. I would leave a call at the desk. We said good-bye until the next morning."
And, of course, at the center of it all is a woman. She is at times seemingly manipulative, while at others extremely vulnerable and baffled. Her character was very well developed and rounded; I think only the narrator had a more lifelike portrayal (potentially because I identified most closely with him). That is not to say that the narrator talks about himself much, which is the beauty of it. The narrator should know more about his own mind than that of other characters.
Read if you like: Characters getting subtly developed in interesting locales, bullfighting, fascinating dialogue styles
"Did I know the Chope de Negre? Did I not. I would see him there some time. I certainly would. We would drink another fine together. We certainly would. They started at six o'clock less a quarter in the morning. Would I be up for the depart? I would certainly try to. Would I like him to call me? It was very interesting. I would leave a call at the desk. He would not mind calling me. I could not let him take the trouble. I would leave a call at the desk. We said good-bye until the next morning."
And, of course, at the center of it all is a woman. She is at times seemingly manipulative, while at others extremely vulnerable and baffled. Her character was very well developed and rounded; I think only the narrator had a more lifelike portrayal (potentially because I identified most closely with him). That is not to say that the narrator talks about himself much, which is the beauty of it. The narrator should know more about his own mind than that of other characters.
Read if you like: Characters getting subtly developed in interesting locales, bullfighting, fascinating dialogue styles