Rating: 
Summary: The Most Over-Rated Classic in History
Review:
I know I don't share the general opinion on this novel. But the fact is that I not only read the book, I also studied it in a university class, so my opinion is not based solely on a shallow reading, but also with deepened analysis and studies. This of course does not make me omniscient on it, but here's my opinion: this book is as interesting to read as reading touristic handouts. It is deeply boring and it really is about nothing (call it Lost Generation if you wish). I honestly don't understand why this novel should be so praised. Not much happens and what happens happens in a boring way.
Now, the bashing being done I want to say that there are other Hemingway books that are much worthier to read. I'd recommend "For Whom the Bell Tolls" any time rather than "The Sun Also Rises". I was fairly disappointed by "TSAR", even with knowledge of the iceberg theory and all the other things related to Ernest Hemingway; in my opinion this does not save the novel at all, barely makes it worthy of scholar interest. Now maybe I am wrong about this novel, but I'm only giving you my impressions of it.
Definitely not the classic it is said to be.
Rating: 
Summary: Not To Be Missed! - Experience It For Yourself!,
Review:
The novel takes place after the cease of the First World War, where numerous survivors, combatants and non-combatants alike, battle their own demons each day to search for a meaning to their lives that has been shattered by the global conflict. The novel, being borne out of Hemingway's own personal experience, focuses on a group of expatriate individuals living in luxury and elegance in the city of Paris, where the first half of the novel takes place. Paris was a popular place for literary figures during the time, and as mentioned, several of the key characters in this novel are writers that are yet to be granted with global fame. The characters in this novel searches for their lost ideals, living in alcoholism and grandeur that the city of Paris has to offer, and while the Hemingway portrays his characters to do so, he uses the bullfight as a symbol of that moral struggle. The ability to confront your fears, to stand in the way of danger and NOT BREAK, is in direct contrast with the way he paints the lifestyles of his characters. Hemingway uses the perspective of Jake Barnes, the main protagonist, to present the action as it takes place first in the city of Paris, then in some quiet countryside where the novel takes a more "tranquil" turn, then in the city of Pamplona where the fiesta takes place, and lastly in Barcelona, where the novel ends.
Jake, who supports himself as a journalist, is madly in love with a promiscuous woman, Lady Brett Ashley, who is in turn engaged to Michael Campbell, one of Jake's companions during the fiesta. Unfortunately, Jake had been injured during the war that left him sexually incapacitated, which served as his scar that shall forever separate him from the woman he loves. Then there is Robert Cohn, who is also in love with Lady Ashley but somehow portrays himself as a guy who sort of "just won't get the message" that he is actually unwanted and that creates tension among the individuals even before the fiesta ever started. (Note: I don't know but somehow I get the feeling that Robert Cohn is actually a physical manifestation of Jake, who is in turn himself is still unable to get over himself and his feeling. But on the other hand, Jake reacts very much differently to Cohn and that somehow Lady Ashley still leans on Jake on some issues regarding her sorrows which she is not able to confess to any other person). And lastly, of the expatriate group, there is Bill Gorton who, a writer just like Cohn, is also Jake's best-friend and much preferred companion than anyone else. And there is also Pedro Romero, the young matador who appears much later in the book, who shall soon participate in a love affair with Lady Ashley and is also a person of great respectability, who faces his fears and struggles "without falsity", which plays an important aspect in his career in the bullfight as well as in the lives of the expatriate personalities, such as Jake and Lady Ashley.
Just like the way he wrote his more accomplished novels like A Farewell To Arms or For Whom The Bell Tolls, Hemingway's gift of writing has already been established right from the start. The Sun Also Rises being his first published novel, Hemingway wrote in laconic, yet crisp prose and his dialogue never ceases to generate tension and anxiety between his characters, making this short-length novel a fully pledged work of art.
One of the most significant aspects of this novel is maybe the part which is mostly overlooked, which is the part where Jake and Bill goes fishing before they proceed to Pamplona, where the Fiesta de San Fermin is to take place. That part, where Jake goes fishing, somewhat signifies the contentment that Jake has long been yearning for, which shall serve as the catalyst that soon make Jake a different person altogether after the fiesta. With the feeling he experienced during that brief period of time in the midst of a fast-paced novel, he shall soon grow to accept that "he shall never possess the woman he loves" and that universal acceptance is the way where he shall finally be able to attain peace and contentment. By the end of the novel, Lady Ashley learns that too, when she "made him [Pedro] go" and decided not to ruin the young man's life. She said she shall go back to Michael Campbell, to whom she says her "sort of thing", and Jake learns to deal with it. And although he once again tried to lean on alcoholism, Lady Ashley prevented him from doing so and soon in the final scene, they were able to overcome their struggles and live a more normal life.
Even though the book focuses merely on the expatriate community in Paris, its moral convictions could adapt to the lives of numerous people, even "normal" people like us. By way of accepting the truth and trying to move on, we are able to break free of the past and in turn be able to adapt to the present world. The Sun Also Rises tells us that everything has a beginning and so is an end, but the earth shall stay forever across generations and that we are but "actors on stages" in this great pattern, and that life is but an unalterable destiny that we should learn to live with. This is a deceptively simple, yet terrific book. Along with The Sun Also Rises, another Amazon quick-pick I recommend is The Losers Club by Richard Perez, which has obviously been influenced buy The Sun Also Rises, not only thematically but stylistically.
Rating:
Summary: Hemingway's first published novel.
Review: Although this is Hemingway's first published novel, it was not the first that I'd read. I had read some of his later works before I came to this one. The novel has been misunderstood for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that many people do not get the irony that is behind the story. When it was published in 1926 it became the rallying cry for what people of that era called "the lost generation". The book is about American expatriates living in France and Spain during the late 1920's. Hemingway and some of his crowd actually did this, but in spite of that, Hemingway has stated that he didn't believe in the "lost generation" stuff. He is more a proponent of man being the architect of his own life, but sometimes things get in the way. I enjoyed the book because of Hemingway's wonderful characters, and because of his descriptions of things that he actually saw and did. The section that describes the running of the bulls in Pamplona is great. Although this book is a little lesser known than some of Hemingway's novels, it's worth a read. Especially if you love Hemingway like I do.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't read the Amazon.com reviews before you read the book
Review: Because if you do, you won't be able to stop laughing. I made the serious, serious mistake of reading Boston's November 29, 1998 review before I read the book, and so when I finally did read it I noted every time "drink," "wine," "bottle," "bar," "cafe," "coffee," "breakfast," "lunch," "dinner" and their variations appeared, and son of a gun if they really weren't on almost every page. Every time I came across one of the words I'd start laughing, making it very difficult to concentrate on the book, which is mainly an extended low-level whine about how screwed up everyone was after the Great War.Seriously, Hemingway shows some flashes of brilliance, but ironically for me they didn't occur with style or even theme, but rather with extremely vivid, stripped down descriptions of the Spanish countryside and such activities as fishing and bullfighting. If you want to read the book for that, you're not going to be disappointed. But if you're expecting action and character development, por el amor de Dios, look elsewhere.
Rating:
Summary: His Second Best
Review: Hemingway got the Nobel Prize for a later inferior novel, The Old Man and the Sea. This is unfortunate because Hemingway's best books were written early in his career, from about 1924 to 1940. I feel that his most complete vision was achieved in For Whom the Bell Tolls, which is a large book with all of Hemingway's ideas, interspersed with a thrilling plot. If I had a second choice, I'd vote for Sun Also Rises. Obviously the famous Hemingway style derived from Gertrude Stein and journalism. Then he wrote about Post-WW1 cynicism and a love gone awry. The famous Lost Generation mops up Parisian wine and European despair with vigor.
The villain is Cohn the Jew. I have some reservations here of course. I feel the same way about Shakespeare's Shylock, but putting historical prejudices aside, Cohn personifies what is not cool about intellectual society in the Twenties. Cohn doesn't get Paris, bullfighting, or fishing. He's a great boxer, but does not box for the right reasons. Don't worry, Hem will explain what are the right reasons. Worst of all, Cohn doesn't get the sexual revolution. An "affair of the lady" has certain considerations to uphold, but in the aftermath of his liaison with Lady Ashley, the flapper vamp, Cohn hangs around like a pathetic puppy longing for bitch's milk.
Barnes, the Hemingway surrogate has a problem. He's had a war accident and has lost essential male equipment, which makes it impossible for Lady Ashley and Hem, er Barnes to consummate a raging desire and love. Hence, the seething irony of Sun Also Rises, the uncool Cohn is able to perform while the very cool Barnes can only watch bulls being killed beautifully. "Wouldn't it be pretty?"
Rating:
Summary: wonderful book...just great
Review: i must say when i started reading this book...it seemed dull at first and to some people it just may be that DULL..but really as you get further into the book you notice all the drifting of scenery and characters and moods...my god Hemingway threw all that in there and it just mixed and while reading it my imagination really felt a lil drunk with all the wine and so dizzy with all the travelling...ITS HOW GOOD HIS DESCRIPTIONS ARE that it literally takes you in...this is great work done right here...gotta luv this book the most...
Rating:
Summary: A Must-Read Classic!
Review: Just like the way he wrote his more accomplished novels like A Farewell To Arms or For Whom The Bell Tolls, Hemingway's gift of writing has already been established right from the start. The Sun Also Rises being his first published novel, Hemingway wrote in laconic, yet crisp prose and his dialogue never ceases to generate tension and anxiety between his characters, making this short-length novel a fully pledged work of art.
One of the most significant aspects of this novel is maybe the part which is mostly overlooked, which is the part where Jake and Bill goes fishing before they proceed to Pamplona, where the Fiesta de San Fermin is to take place. That part, where Jake goes fishing, somewhat signifies the contentment that Jake has long been yearning for, which shall serve as the catalyst that soon make Jake a different person altogether after the fiesta. With the feeling he experienced during that brief period of time in the midst of a fast-paced novel, he shall soon grow to accept that "he shall never possess the woman he loves" and that universal acceptance is the way where he shall finally be able to attain peace and contentment. By the end of the novel, Lady Ashley learns that too, when she "made him [Pedro] go" and decided not to ruin the young man's life. She said she shall go back to Michael Campbell, to whom she says her "sort of thing", and Jake learns to deal with it. And although he once again tried to lean on alcoholism, Lady Ashley prevented him from doing so and soon in the final scene, they were able to overcome their struggles and live a more normal life.
Even though the book focuses merely on the expatriate community in Paris, its moral convictions could adapt to the lives of numerous people, even "normal" people like us. By way of accepting the truth and trying to move on, we are able to break free of the past and in turn be able to adapt to the present world. The Sun Also Rises tells us that everything has a beginning and so is an end, but the earth shall stay forever across generations and that we are but "actors on stages" in this great pattern, and that life is but an unalterable destiny that we should learn to live with. This a great book. Another quick novel recommendation -- a book that surprised me -- is The Losers Club by Richard Perez
Rating:
Summary: wkrc wcpo cpo drehz
Review: krc.... you are interdimensional travelers
You are performing remote psychotronic psychomotor assault on
children...
You have a psychotronics armamentarium.
The Schottelkote five dollar bill is your regular programing
fare.
You are interdimenional travelers, krc.
You are above the law krc, and you act like it.
interdimensional travelers
You are psychometricians using electronics against children.
your jesus initiative shows the black cynicism within your
corporate mass consciousness..
you are dangerous krc... know that you are very dangerous
and now here is something that is not gillman
you will have the gps location of automobiles presently
what are you going to do with that information?
interdimensional traveling in a fullerene mine field may be
your next shapeshifting get away..
you are extortionists for profit
you are interdimensional travelers krc
Rating:
Summary: A candid examination of the human condition
Review: Many of the reviews I've read of The Sun Aslo Rises complain that it is lacking in plot. When reading Hemingway, it is more important to focus on the theme; why did Hemingway write this book? What is he trying to say? It seems to me that Hemingway is focusing on a basic range of emotions with the essence of the book being that poeple are so limited by what they consider appropriate in relationships. Jake and Brett can not have a romantic relationship due to Jake's injury however, they have all of the emotion and commitment necessary to have a successful union. Brett becomes physically intimate with several people in the novel, yet she is not emotionally intimate with any of them. Jake, on the other hand, is emotionally intimate with many characters including Bill, and the inn keeper in Pamplona although he can not enjoy physical intimacy. I believe that Hemingway is demonstrating the difficulties involved in forming complete and healthy relationships in life. Readers who appriciate this book understand that Hemingway's purpose is not to entertain, although he does so artfully, but to force an examination of our own lives. The closing scene in the novel just wrenches my heart as it would anyone's who has ever been close to having everything in life, but has just one impossible obsticle denying their dream.
Rating:
Summary: Why the hype?
Review: My first taste of Hemingway and I've got to say I'm very disappointed. His style is crisp and economical and I like the dialog. Outside of that, there is no huge conflict here to keep you turning pages, save for Jakes love of Brett. I just got to the stage where I just didn't care what happened to Jake, Cohn or any of the others or where they were travelling to.
I still have Men Withhout Women to read but I will more than likely shift it to the bottom of the pile. I think Graham Greene is a much better writer. Greene writes with style and keeps you turning pages, i.e. The Quiet American.
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