The idea to read this book was almost forced in nature. As most of us were first exposed to this in our high school years for an English class, it wasn't until I was actually teaching a class at a community college when I first picked this up. Somehow the curriculum of this particular reading comprehension course had this on the menu. Like any good teacher, I figured knowing my product before standing in front of a class made the most sense. and it became the first of 5 books by Hemingway I have read.
This book is unlike the Hemingway I came to know later, in that it is the most simplistically written of his works that I personally have read. This isn't to say it lacks detail or a gripping story line, quite the opposite is true. To date I have yet to come across a book that offers such detail in its depiction of a character vs. his/her struggle. Even the way Hemingway describes the character in this story eating lunch is a mind-bending experience for the stand alone reason that it makes you feel like you know exactly what he is talking about, even if you've never been in a boat, or on the sea. I could literally taste what the old man was preparing.
Without destroying the adventure for you, let me just put it simply; this book is about a Cuban fisherman's struggle - his battle - with a huge marlin which is set somewhere in the Gulf Stream. Some have called it a tale of courage in the face of defeat, and they would be right. The main character is painted early in the novel as a man with the most unlucky type of luck, a fisherman who hasn't made a catch in over 80+ days. When he ventures out to the open sea he has a battle worthy of any war-story. This doesn't sounds like high adventure for most I am sure, but I can assure you this will be much more than you expect.
I recommend this book for anyone just starting to take interest in Hemingway's works. Besides his short stories, this book can give you a powerhouse delivery of the type of descriptive style Hemingway is famous for. I would also recommend it for anyone interested in deep sea fishing as Hemingway was himself, which is probably why he was able to depict so clearly the extraordinary battle between man and fish.
This book is 127 pages long and I was able to finish it in a busy day without wasting any time. On my sliding scale I give this book a solid 10/10 for its ability to completely immerse me in the story. Few books have been able to place me in the drivers seat so to speak quite like this. When reading most books I always have the sense that I am reading a book and it is not real. But with this book I lost the lines of reality and was sometimes sitting directly in the boat in fierce competition with that marlin and later those sharks. This booked moved me like few others ever have, and I truly believe it deserves all the credit it has been given.
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