Farewell To Arms

Rating:
Summary: A disappointing novel
Review: A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway is a dreadfully boring novel. The characters Catherine and Frederick, are mindless nits wrapped up in their love affair, while enlisted in World War I. I thought the book lacked a single intelligent thought throughout its contents.

To me a good book is one that is thought provoking and makes one think, and when coming near the end gets a feeling as if they had befriended the characters. In a Farewell to Arms, the only thing I thought about was the frivolity of the characters and how they were devoid of any verisimilitude. I only wished that the end would come quicker so I wouldn't have to read another drawn out conversation on the reassurance of their love for another. I strongly urge any reader of books on compassion and intelligence to stray from opening A Farewell to Arms.

Rating:
Summary: Not Nearly As Good As Hemingway Can Be
Review: I am almost embarrassed by how unimpressed I was when I slogged through this book. I generally like and enjoy Hemingway, but I badly struggled to maintain interest while reading A Farewell to Arms. This is a cheap and probably weak assessment, and I want to say that Hemingway in general is awesome, but I just didn't like this book. Perhaps I ought to re-read it, but until I do, two stars is the best I can do. Definitely DO NOT read this book if you haven't read other Hemingway classics - you'll likely never pick another one up.

Rating:
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: A Farewell to Arms was the first book I've read by Hemingway. Seeing as he's such a well known author, I figured I'd try reading one of his books. But, I'm not exactly sure what to think about this book. I'm not sure if I really understand the main theme of the novel. At first it seems to focus on Henry's, the main character, time as an ambulance driver in Italy(although he's American himself), but after he gets hurt the novel makes a sudden change and focuses on his relationship with the English nurse Catherine Barkeley, whom he had me previously. But, the relationship between them seems to rushed. They claim to be in love with each other, although they've known each other for only days. Although I don't think it's impossible to love someone after only a few days, it seems as if the relationship wasn't given enough time to develop, perhaps maybe to get the novel moving. Anyway, after Henry's injured, he decides to flee with Catherine to Switzerland and his journey to get to her(while facing danger since he is apparently deserting the military) before they flee together and their journey together takes up most of the book. One thing I found particulary strange about this book was the dialogue, mainly between Henry and Catherine. It consisted of fairly short simple sentences and they never seemed to have real conversations. Also, and this may sound kind of weird, they seemed to agree too fast. I mean, it seemed as if as soon as one of them suggested doing something or going somewhere, the other one quickly agreed with out any discussion or protestation. They way in which they always were so willing to do what the other one wanted just seemed too simple and unrealistic. Also, often I found their conversations, mainly what Catherine said, to be comical, but I don't think that was the author's intention. The only part of this book that really touched me, was the end, but of course I won't mention what happened and ruin things.Anyway, I'm glad I read this book just to see what Hemingway's work is like and although I didn't enjoy the novel a lot or see clearly what the point to it was, I'll admit that perhaps it's one of those novels you'd have to read more than once to really appreciate. The book was fairly easy reading and if you read at a good pace and are interested in this book, or you're a big fan of Hemingway's, I think this book is worth reading.

Rating:
Summary: Overrated and Disappointing
Review: Having forced myself to finish Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms I wish I had put it down when I had initially lost interest. I could have read something much better.

Maybe when the novel was written Hemingway's style was new and refreshing for those that read it at that time, but by todays standards its nothing special at all. On the one hand you get long winded descriptions of the environment in the story while you get little to nothing about the characters. Events take place leaving the reader confused about the specifics of characters and why they acted/reacted the ways that they did. The biggest problem, however, is the conversations between Catherine and the main character Lieutenant Henry. These conversations are quite numerous and extremely unrealistic, not to mention boring and repetitive to the point of obsurdity. It seems to be a trend for Catherine and Tenente to say everything three times. The unrealism creates characters that are not believable making the novel nearly worthless.

The two parts of the story that interested me the most were vague at best. Also, it can be stated that the novel is an obvious anti-war one that has a good message. Maybe Hemingway's other works are more note worthy but stay away from this one.

Rating:
Summary: He doesn't deserve the title
Review: Hemingway's style may have been original and may be imitated more than any other style but that does not mean this is a good book. The style makes for an easy read and some great descriptions but the story, character development and dialogue are lacking. Maybe it is that I heard this type of story a million times, but it was just not very interesting to me. In one review that praised the character development they mistakenly called the priest Rinaldi. Rinaldi and the priest were the only two characters in the whole book that I enjoyed. The interactions between any one else in the book were annoying to say the least. There was so little character development with three of Henry's companions, Aymo and the two anarchists, that I couldn't keep them straight. The dialogue was awful to say the least. Rinaldi and the priest were somewhat interesting but the conversations between catherine and Henry were awful. The only conversations that we see them having are about what he was to do and that she will do whatever he wants to do. Was this Hemingway's idea of love? Probably, but it is not mine and therefore their love was meaningless to me.

Read this book, because it changed the way author's write today not because it is a wonderful novel.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Maybe I would have enjoyed A Farewell to Arms more if I hadn't had such high expectations. This is Hemingway afterall. But I couldn't believe the dialogue. At first I thought it was awkward because Hemingway was literally translating Italian phrases into English (which was easy for me to notice having studied Italian for several years). But it eventually became apparent that this was not always the case. The characters' speech seemed fake throughout the novel, thus making the characters hard to believe.

If you're like me and sad endings ruin a book for you, don't read A Farewell to Arms. The romantic sections when Frederic and Catherine were together were wonderful. But the tragic ending lead me to want to create a different one for myself. Then there were the chapters describing the war which seemed to drag on at times. I found myself continuing to read just to get to the parts where Frederic and Catherine reunite.

It had it's moments, but I don't think it was consistently great.

Rating:
Summary: Bleakly Beautiful
Review: This is the story of a wounded American soldier in World War I, who falls in love with a British nurse, who is still mourning the death of her fiancee a year before. This is another Hemingway story that is not pretty, in that there is little happiness to be found by these lovers. What "A Farewell to Arms" is, is another incredibly clear, crisp, almost blunt story of two people seeking happiness or, at least, an escape from misery, amidst the horrors of war. Hemingway tends to portray war as horrible but also adventurous, and that does not sit well with me as we face another war, or the continuation/expansion of an existing war, for the United States. However, this novel is written so well that it is hard to not like it anyway.

Rating:
Summary: Hemingway starts to mature
Review: Hemingway's greatest novels (and I am not includding The Old Man and the Sea here, that is a novella, not one of his epic emotional works) start with The Sun Also Rises and end with For Whom the Bell Tolls. Sandwiched in between is the book that can be seen as transition piece (though, techinically speaking it was written right after The Sun Also Rises, and so is still part of the 'early' Hemingway that brought him fame and exceptance by the literary establishment). Like in The Sun Also Rises, he focuses on a couple main characters and their emotional bond. But also, he comments extensively on war and society, as in For Whom the Bell Tolls. This is where we start to see the pOlitical Hemingway arsise. But unlike a lot of 20th centurary literature with a social conscious, it does not sacrifice human thematic elements to push forward an agenda. No, Hemingway manages to condemn war, while still transcending the mundaness of it, the who's right and who's wrong and instead focuses on the lives that war touches and ruins. In Fredric Henry and Cathrine Barkley, he gives us two tragic heros who's lives, while becoming intertwined in love, are ultimately destroyed. Like all Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms is a true experience unrivaled in any other literature.

Rating:
Summary: For chrissake...
Review: Why read this book? I've said it before, and I'll say it again: it's phony.

Rating:
Summary: A Farewell To Arms
Review: The book A Farewell To Arms was great. It had a great plot filled with many suprises. The wonderful story of the book made me rate it 9 out of 10. A Farewell To Arms involves a great love story of Lieutenant Henry and Catherine Barkely during WWI. Lieutenant Henry is in the military during the war and Catherine Barkley is the nurse during the war. When Henry gets injured during a battle, he then goes to the hospital and meets Catherine. As Henery is in the hospital curing up, he then starts liking Catherine. They both fall in love but dont marry yet because they're still in war. Later these two lovers get into problems which may cause them to break up. To find out what happenes to Henery or Catherine, read A Farewell To Arms. This book has a great intersting story, not like other books which keep on talking about love. This book contains action, romance, and mystery. I would recommend this book to everyone. I hope you read this book and find it intersting.