From a cafe in Pamplona

The other day, I was in the bookstore with The Tim browsing books. The Tim was buying up SF and fantasy and I recommended a couple folks whose work I had read. He soon had a handful. We chatted about the state of fantasy and sf and the influx of vampires and the like. Typical afternoon browsing for a couple of avid readers.

It just so happened that I had a gift card, burning a hole in my wallet. I thought I might pick up a couple of books myself. While The Tim was reading the back of a couple urban fantasy books, I wandered off to the next section. I was browsing the literary section and thought I may just want to pick up something. I stopped, searched and grabbed a couple books as we headed to the check out. The Tim chatted with the check out girl as she scanned his purchases. She seemed to be a fan of fantasy. He paid, then I stepped up and put down my Faulkner and Hemingway and she frowned.

The Tim asked if I was trying to relive high school, and the girl tsked. I felt like an interloper, as if I was suddenly regarded as a snob. I shrugged. I have no doubt I was one of the few folks to willingly buy such novels to read, for pleasure.

I bought The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway. I had originally read the novel about 30 yrs ago in either 8th or 9th grade. I admit, I was curious to see if the novel would still fascinate me. As a teenager, I became enthralled by the Lost Generation and read everything I could find. That started with that first reading of The Sun Also Rises. That group of novelists and poets were a big influence on me, more so then any other.

Would I still be fascinated by Hemingway and the Lost Generation? Would the themes and the stories and the style still intrigue me as much as it had? I bought the novel to find out. I then read the novel over the past couple of weeks, just to see what would happen.

The short answer is yes and no.

I still love Hemingway's style in this novel. I still find it fascinating. But no, the characters seem not so larger then life as they had. I think it is because Jake and Brett are not as 'new' to me. Those characters are not that different from people I have known. As a matter of fact, the characters in the book are very much like many people I have known. The themes, the story, is not all that unfamiliar to me.

At fifteen, it was a new world, as much as Pern or Middle Earth. Today, it seems almost like a book report on life as I have seen it. My appreciation of the novel has deepened, but has also changed. It is still a great novel, it still intrigues me. Funny how different people, in different times, at different ages, will view a novel. My view has changed, no doubt. The novel still works for me and in that sense, the experiment was a success.

I think I will continue the experiment, see just what I can see. I wonder how much my view has changed on other novels. Maybe those other great novels will transcend time and space as The Sun Also Rises has done. Maybe my old English Lit teachers knew their stuff. I like to think so. We'll find out.

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Comments

[Nicole]

Some people just don't get it. There's nothing wrong with reading the classics.

[Veronica]

I'd think it's a level of maturity, too. Study and education can be just as much enjoyment as escapism.

[Patrick]

What a difference between the fifteen year old and the 44 year old. I may have gotten more enjoyment this time around. I think I may just revisit these old friends, sit for a spell.

[Jenny Beans]

There is a part of me that still loves indulging in classic literature, and I'm always surprised when I'm at the counter and the checkout person admires them. Usually, they are my age or older. The younger ones just sort of wrinkly their nose and bag it.