The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Stories

So I finally finished this book... after putting it down for more than 3 months. I read it because Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea was one of my unexpected favourites this year and I wanted to read some of his short stories. I could say that it was well worth the read, if only for the story “A Clean, Well-lighted Place” which really struck a chord with me. I also liked “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” and “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber” which are actually quite similar since they have the same setting and even share some plot devices.

So, what took me so long to finish this book when it was only a mere 154 pages? Well, I did not particularly like the Nick Adams stories and I was practically falling asleep every time I read one. In fact I would have forgotten that I was still reading this if not for my goodreads list.

In sum, the stories in this collection are a hit-and-miss for me which explains the 3-star rating. I find that I love when Hemingway writes about loneliness and desolation as portrayed so succinctly by the following quote:

“...It was not fear or dread. It was a nothing that he knew too well. It was all a nothing and a man was nothing too. It was only that and light was all it needed and a certain cleanness and order. Some lived in it and never felt it but he knew it was all nada y pues nada y nada y pues nada...”

Needless to say I'll definitely be reading more of Papa's works in the future.