![Wink ;)](./images/smilies/wink.gif)
That is what I use to think, anyway. I had read some Hemingway in high school. We read The Old Man and the Sea and a short story that I do not remember but always refered to as "A Farewell to Arms Lite". In either case, compared to my obsession at the time, Stephen Crane, and to me new author Stephen R Donaldson I was not impressed. I had decided that Hemingway was a lazy writer that appealed to easily impressed readers with his "oh, the Old Man represents Jesus!" garbage. It did not help matters that I was raised in a family of Hemingway haters.
Later, in college, I would run across one of his short stories again. This time, about a couple on a train talking around the subject of abortion. Whatevs, Steinbeck was better.
Finally, after immersing myself in modernists writings, I decided to read The Sun Always Rises... and I was thoroughly impressed. My world shattered, I started to wonder if maybe... just maybe I was unfair to ol' Ernesto.
So this month, I'll be reading the other two 'great' works of his, A Farewell to Arms and For Whom the Bell Tolls. Who knows? I might even give The Old Man and the Sea another try. It has been about eleven years and I am wiser about my readings. It will be interesting to see if my opinion has changed.
Anyone is allowed to join in, make suggestions on short stories, attitude, comment on my analysis, etc. You don't have to stick with what I am currently reading either, since true classics rarely depend on plot spoilers.
So, bring your hatred or praise as you sip some absenthe, it's time to discuss Ernest Hemingway.