The Old Man and The Sea, Book Cover May Vary

Direct, easy to read. Finished in a day. Definitely makes me want to read more from Hemingway

The struggle is real and goal oriented. Could be used in life for those who fight enough with due diligence you might get what you want. Always a price to pay.

This is one of those books that gives off a really good message, the first time I read it was a few years ago and decided to buy it to have my own copy, unfortunately I ordered it in "good" and it had a bunch of hilighted sentences and some random words with a bunch of questions written in pen within the margins.

This is the first book I ever remember reading that I struggled to put down. The baseball allusions, especially those of Joe DiMaggio, hooked me. Of course, I also had to keep rooting for the underdog Santiago. The boy's loyalty is honorable, and Santiago's determination is inspiring. Friends ask me how I can love such a depressing book, and all I can say is that the book was never depressing to me. It was a feel good book for me from cover to cover. Perhaps, it might have something to do with the way I celebrate the conflicts in my own life while gaining strengh from my own successful failures.

Everything was spelled out for me and I felt well informed about the book's condition. It is in good condition and I appreciate the seller's input about it.

Aside from a few short stories, "The Old Man and the Sea" is the first Hemmingway book that I have read. Of course, I am familiar with his persona, and the idea of the "Hemmingway man," and was well aware as his stature as one of the greatest writers of modern times. But I had never read his books. Wow. I mean, really. Wow. With "The Old Man and the Sea," it is so easy to see why Hemmingway was awarded the Nobel Prize, and why he deserves all of his accolades. This short novel is fierce, full of vibrant energy and humanity, all the while being a slave to the realities of finite power, of the inability to struggle against something greater than yourself. Of course, this is the standard "man against nature" story, but it is told with such craft that even cliches ring true. Santiago is a fully-realized character. His strength of will is all that holds together his failing body. The great marlin that he struggles with is like a true fish, lacking personality or anthropomorphism, but just a powerful beast that does not want to die. There is no Moby Dick animosity, and the fish is under the water for the majority of the struggle. All of it, the sharks, the flying fish, the small boat and the ocean, each is what it is, lacking metaphor and saying that life itself is enough. No need to wax poetic. I never knew a story a little over 120 pages could pack such a punch.

The Old Man and The Sea is perhaps one of Ernest Hemingway's finest achievements. Here you will find the lean descriptive prose that made him one of the finest writer's of the twentieth century.It tells the story of a fisherman who is down on his luck, but whose spirit is strong as the tropical winds that have tanned his skin and the sun that has made weak his eyes. He is devoted to the sea and knows all of its wildness and subtle moods. He goes out alone one day without his sidekick boy companion, because the boy's family has forbidden him to help his teacher for he has bad luck.He hooks a Marlin, a huge mythical Marlin, the kind that fishermen only dream of catching. And the fish drags him out deeper and deeper into the ocean, farther than he's ever traveled. The battle is fierce and his hands are even bloodied as he ties himself to the rope and the fish in a struggle that is somehow symbolic of man's eternal quest to gain control over natural forces.I would say more, however, Hemingway has done such a fine job that I suggest you read and read this wonderful tale. The ending is of course classic Hemingway. And it was for this book that Hemingway won the Nobel Prize for literature.

What an incredible story. I read this in less than two hours (it is a novella) and upon completing this simple story, I had a incredibly overwhelming satisfaction toward the ferocity of the human spirit. Yes, this book is all story but the main idea is all spirit. Those that can't see the incredible battle within are not READING the story, just the words. As a simple by-product, this book led directly to Ernest Hemingway's receipt of the Nobel Prize in 1954. This story features three main characters: the old man (Santiago), a young boy (Manolin), and the human spirit. Santiago takes on the once-in-a-lifetime catch of a prize marlin which is described and portrayed in a manner to draw out the challenge facing each individual, both physically and emotionally. Santiago hasn't had a catch in 84 days. On day 85, he decides that, no matter what, he'll not return with a catch. Indeed, that was his fate. Santiago experiences physical pain, emotional pain, spiritual pain, and the pain of being alone with the elements. Yet, he continues on, creating hope where there is none. Before this story reaches it conclusion, getting right with life, Santiago decides it is he or the marlin.This story is incredible. It deserves(d) all the critical acclaim received. Once again, those who didn't find this story touching their soul didn't read the story.