Greenwood Lab School

The Have and the Have Nots

Ernest Hemingway

pgs. 1-23

I’ve picked up another Ernest Hemingway book this week. They each seem to get more philosophical than the first no matter which order you read them in. But I can always count on getting that relaxed feeling when I sit down to read these books everytime. Basically just the beginning of the story is about a sailor man’s lifestyle, which someday I hope to live up to whenever I retire. The way Hemingway writes is somewhat difficult for some of us to comprehend. Some people that are more tense and stressed may have trouble reading these books. What I read was about how the man wakes up every morning in his little island shack on the coast, goes down to the tiki bar and the marina buys some drinks, and goes out all day to spend his life on the ocean with his friends or most of the time, alone. So far within the first couple pages, it seem’s as if Hemingway want’s to get you into this state of mind about the characters attitude and personality before he jumps into a plot or dilema.

The way Hemingway writes also reminds me of some of the music I listen to. This lifestyle seems to be a source of spirituality. To be able to live life to he fullest and do what YOU want every day, is very very healthy. Taking in positive media, like music the way I like to do is another form of this. The one island I think that these stories take place on everytime I read from him is St. John or U.S. Virgin Islands, Tortolla. Fro some reason that’s just what’s set in my mind. Some things I hope to see continue in the story are some positive quotes or messages, that I can focus the attention toward my life or reflect my attitude, a normal lifestyle that leads up to some kind of a plot and mainly I want to see some more detail about life on the coast and oceanography would be very interesting in my opinion to read more about. Telling from the title I hope to learn about possibly, those less fortuante thean I, that are still able to love life and live it everyday the way they enjoy to, and never get caught up in the, “next big thing,” or Popular… is a good word. So hopefully next week I can get even MORE out of this book!

The Old Man and the Sea

pgs. 25-45

Ernest Hemingway

This week as I was sick I continued reading the very intriguing book, “The Old Man and the Sea.” As I’m sure you know if you read my last reading letter, Ernest Hemingway is a very good writer and progressing through the book, I find each page is better than the last. The following 20 pages I read this week, were similar to the first 25. But I think what I read this week focuses on how alone the Old Man is, but I think that that’s the way that he wants to live his life, I think he enjoy’s his life this way because there’s nobody to contribute to the stress of everyday life. Something else that really stood out to me was that, this man, works for what he needs and wants. Like whenever he went out to sea to CATCH HIS DINNER! He caught a marlin and a fish called Albacore. So that’s basically a synopsis/reflection of what was read this week.

This book is very easy to reflect about mainly because it’s got a lot of meaning and heart to it. I really like the old man’s attitude in this book because it’s kind of related to mine. He’s being himself, having fun with life, doing what he wants to do to make a living, but specifically not caring what anybody else thinks of him. There’s a quote that I heard the other day that makes me think of this book and a couple other occurances in my life and it goes like this, “There are Hurricane, Earthquakes, and Tornadoes, and lots of really bad things happen to good people everyday….and sometimes….there’s not a damn thing you can do about it.” This quote reminds me of the story because the old man is a very wise human being. He’s spiritual, and intriguing, fascinating, and smart. This just simply reminds me of something that he would say. Other than that the story was very enlightening and I gess I want to leave you by saying that this book is a great one. If you’re that kind of down to Earth person who likes the coast and the ocean, and tropics, and FISH! Then this book is totally for you…

The Old Man and the Sea

Ernest Hemingway

pgs. 1-25

This week I decided to begin the book The Old Man and the Sea. I really wanted to read an Ernest Hemingway book, and this one sounded like a good one to start out with. Even though I’ve only read the first 25 pages this book is like nothing I’ve ever read before. It starts with an old man who kind of lives the lifestyle of a sailor, but his attitude kind of reminds me of myself. He is a poor old fisherman who lives on the shore, and as far as I know is in search for a very big fish, with a boy he met. However, I have a strong feeling that with the way this book is heading so far, that he is in search of much more than just a huge fish, from an old tale. He lives a pretty simple life as well which I think is cool. He seems to be a wise, worn, scraggly old man who spends his days down b the marina, or by the bay fishing, or on the coast, or at the bar with his friends. So as far as I’ve gotten into the book it was like an introduction.

Ernest Hemingway writes much different than any other author, which is something that I’m very much beginning to like about his books. There were quite a few lines that I read that I really liked and wanted to remember such as, “The lions would run and play along the African shore,” and then there were lines that showed the different way that Hemingway writes, such as “I borrowed two dollars and a half from him.” Something else that I like about his writing is that some parts are easy to comprehend, and to me they seem like they would make great song lyrics. I get the sense that the characters in his book are really down to earth as well. The old man in this story for instance, is kind of a loner, i mean he doesn’t really like being around people which is kind of how I see myself, therefore I can really relate to his character. So far it’s a very good book, and very interesting, and I hope to be getting back to it very soon, to find out especially where this sailing throughout the ocean may take the wise old man and the boy, and what journeys and/or lessons they may cross along the way…