Same as after my first reading, now, 15 years later, I still hesitate to casually recommend this magnificent novel to anyone after re-reading.
I hesitate because it will demand a level of patience from the reader that we often lack in modern times, a willingness to embrace vividly drawn characters in all their imperfections, and a strong stomach to endure the graphic depictions of wartime horror.
The story is set during the Spanish Civil War, in the mountains where guerrilla fighters are hiding, waging war against the fascist regime. Robert Jordan, an American volunteer, arrives to blow up a bridge to facilitate an attack on the fascist forces and cut off their supply lines. To achieve this, he needs the help of a small group of rebels who have taken refuge in one of the mountain caves.
However, this mission seems suicidal from the very beginning, raising the question – is following orders at any cost more important than human lives? Within the group, Robert meets María, and he falls in love with her at first sight, adding an entirely new dimension to his mission.
“In the night he awoke and held her tight as though she were all of life and it was being taken away from him.”
The reader is immediately plunged into the heart of the action and follows the story over the course of three days, during which the preparations for the attack unfold. The tension is palpable, with moments filled with fear and anticipation, hope and its loss, and sharp conflicts among the diverse members of the group. It feels as though the entire lives of these people have been compressed into these three days. During this time, there are frequent digressions, some of which extensively describe situations that are only loosely related to the ongoing mission.
At times, during one of these digressions, you may feel the urge to put the book down, frustrated by the slow pace of the plot. 500 pages to blow up a single bridge? But as I said, the atmosphere is so tangible that you feel like one of the partisans, strategizing the attack, drinking absinthe, or watching the guarding posts from the woods, as you lay on a bed of pine needles. The story slowly simmers, never releasing the tension, until it reaches a boiling point. You’ll find yourself forced to sit with this band of freedom fighters, listen to their foul mouths, and confront their fears – plenty of time to grow to love them.
“I had an inheritance from my father,
It was the moon and the sun.
And though I roam all over the world,
The spending of it’s never done.”
Hemingway’s deceptively simple writing style, which is more poetic here than we are used to from him, and the dialogues for which he is famous (but also criticized), dominate the novel in his uniquely distinctive way. Everyone has a different experience with his work, so this story won’t appeal to everyone. But maybe you find yourself intrigued by this description and want to feel the euphoria on the front lines, the day before the decisive battle, like a deep breath before the plunge. Arm yourself with patience and let the story take you over.
4.5/5
