Hemingway rises to fame with The Sun

The Sun Also Rises is the last Ernest Hemingway book on my list. It was his first full novel, released in 1926, and is considered by many to be his best. I have to admit I thought it was pretty dull for the first third to half, but once everything started coming together, I couldn’t put it down.

The book follows an American veteran of the war named Jake and his half dozen or so friends living in Paris. He is in love with a flirtatious girl named Brett (as is every man she comes in contact with), but Brett is wild and unable to settle down. Already twice divorced, she is engaged now to a man who lives as wild as she does, a man named Mike. Mike spends freely (or more accurately, borrows freely, knowing he has an inheritance coming in sometime soon), and unlike every other guy who runs into Brett, he isn’t possessive of her, allowing her to have her affairs so long as she returns to him. Jake loves Brett, maybe deeply, but a war wound prevents him from having sex, which both know would never fly for the sexually free Brett. Jake’s other friends are Bill and Robert. While Mike is away, Brett has a short affair with Brett, but she isn’t into him for anything serious. Shortly thereafter, the group decides to head to Spain for some fishing and the running of the bulls.

Jake and Bill end up fishing on their own for a week. Brett and Mike were running behind, and Robert, unable to let go of Brett, stayed behind to be with her. When they all convene together in Pamplona, Jake learns that Robert and Brett have slept together again, and this time, Robert is unable to see it for the fling that it is. Brett has all ready moved on to the next piece of eye candy, a young matador named Romero. Robert has taken to following Brett around. Mike finds it all very amusing and goads Robert into fighting him, a fight that splinters the group’s friendship. They all go their separate ways.

A week or so later, Jake is about to return to Paris when he gets an urgent note from Brett, asking him to come to Madrid. When he gets there, he finds Brett alone and penniless; she has driven Romero away and wants to get back to Mike. Jake and Brett share a taxi to take her home, and confess to each other that through all of this, they still love each other, but they can only sigh at things that might have been.

Being a very early Hemingway work, this book doesn’t have the “choppy” dialogue that is found in pretty much all of his books that came later. It is more fleshed out, less abrupt, and maybe more lyrical if that makes sense. He does a great job of developing all 5 friends, and the story is engaging once it really gets going. I’ve liked most of his books I’ve read, but this one is definitely my favorite.