Last month, when we chose For Whom the Bell Tolls for our next book club read, I was very excited because I like classics and this was one that I had never read but always meant to. Plus, despite occasional classic options, our book club hadn't selected one in its year and a half of existence. Most of the members who were present at the meeting seemed genuinely excited about reading a classic.
For the first 50-100 pages of the novel, I was still excited to read this book. I was drawn into the story and anxious to see what would happen next. Now, however, I have become bored with the story. Hopefully, it's just a short slump--I'm only on page 137--I'm going to spend some concentrated time reading today, and I plan to not watch very much TV this week. The book is almost 500 pages and with my slow reading, I will need all week to finish unless the pace picks back up and stays on a fast-moving course.
In other reading news, I still need to read the last half of War & Peace and can't wait to find time to read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and 2666, which are both chunky books. I'm going to start one of them as soon as I finish Hemingway, regardless of what the next book club selections is.
Now, though, I am going to read for at least an hour, until time to head out to a Super Bowl party.
2 comments:
The only Hemingway book I have is 'The Old Man and the Sea' which I didn't manage to get past the first few pgs. It's a classic that's why I bought it thinking it's quite a small book so should be a fast read, yet... prob too much dialogues instead of a narrating prose. Have you read this...what do you think? Maybe it's just me, just don't like books with too many dialogues.
Sal,
Thanks for stopping by.
I have read The Old Man & the Sea several times, once as a high school student and at least five as a high school English teacher. It's not my favorite Hemingway, but I do like the story.
I think Hemingway's journalistic style is an acquired taste. I generally prefer more descriptive writing. However, I actually ended up loving For Whom the Bell Tolls. You should give it a try.
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