in our time

This short little book of short stories from Hemingway is good. I've read some of these, mostly the Nick Adams stories, before in The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway which I've gotten about halfway through on my Kindle years ago.

Some of these stories worked better than others, for me and for the place I'm at in life. There are classics like Indian Camp and The Doctor and the Doctor's Wife, and they are good. I loved The End of Something and The Three-Day Blow the most. These are all Nick Adams stories, the latter two dealing with the end of an important relationship. Hemingway often depicts relationships (and particularly men behaving in them) in ways that I do not really understand or feel frustrated by. Nick basically detonates his relationship for little reason. Maybe I need to read it again. But I love The Three-Day Blow because Nick is upset and depressed about it but trying to put on a face. Then he finds hope and is pleased with that hope of something in the future. I don't think any of the other Nick Adams stories in this book return to this.

Of course the writing is swell. One of Hemingway's favorite adjectives. It's funny, reading Ernest Hemingway On Writing the other day, he specifically notes in a letter that he tries to avoid timely words and talks about his use of the word swell. It cracks me up.

Pretty good! Will probably re-read some of these. I am not typically a short story person but I'm trying to get more into them.

* “He says opening bottles is what makes drunkards,” Bill explained. “That's right,” said Nick. He was impressed. He had never thought of that before. He had always thought it was solitary drinking that made drunkards.
* Pages 46-48. Nick is exploring the end of his relationship and is clearly depressed and trying to put on a brave face in front of his friend. His friend is telling him all the ways in which he is better off, which is always high on the list of things you do not want to hear and do not believe, anyway. Then the idea of hope comes to him. Then, of course, he is happy.
* “He says he's never been crazy, Bugs,” Ad said. “He's got a lot coming to him.”