The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway

I don’t typically review fiction since I find it difficult to put into words how I feel about it. With non-fiction it’s usually just a matter of explaining whether or not the information in the book was worth the time investment and whether or not the prose was good. With fiction there is of course the question of whether or not the prose was good (it was, in this case) but after that’s sorted, how am I meant to decide if it was worth it? That’s the tricky part but I’ll give it a go.

Nothing much really happens in this novel. As in, there aren’t true character arcs or a hero’s journey. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing at all. Not every novel has to stick to a formula and a good chunk of the best ones don’t. Hemingway in this novel is exceptional at creating these brief scenes that chisel away at the core of the characters. Sadly, at a certain point very far from the end, you feel as though you’ve already gotten to the core of each character (at least the main ones) and there’s not really much else to explore.

After that point, the main attraction is Hemingway’s ability to transport you to a different world in so few words. You feel as though you’re a part of this older world where people drink five bottles of wine for lunch and go watch a bull fight after a man was killed during a bull run that morning. This is a testament to Hemingway’s ability and what carries the book for almost the entire second half.