For Whom the Bell Tolls

By Ernest Hemingway

“I just reread this one recently, and it’s still right on top of my list. I like Hemingway’s view of what constitutes a worthwhile human being, but beyond that, it’s a very life-affirming book. It’s a big book, 471 pages, but that 471 pages spans three days. It’s three days in which these characters live their lives, knowing at the end of the book they’re probably going to die. When I finish reading it, I want to be a better person.

I want to go out there and be better, experience more, do more. Robert Jordan meets this woman, and he falls in love with her. But he always has going in the back of his mind that whatever he’s going to do, he’s got three days to do it because the bad guys are coming for him, and he doesn’t know what the outcome is going to be. He wants to reach out and do everything he can and be everything he can. I recommend it to high school students because it’s a pretty easy read.

Hemingway is noted for his scarcity and economy of language, but beyond that, it has a deep philosophy to it, and it makes you want to reach out and grab things and be better. Hemingway reflects a world that is full of adventure and goodness.”

Photo by Madison Olsen