For Whom the Bell Tolls
by Ernest Hemingway · first published 1940
43% recommend51% neutral6% critical
Why HN recommends it
Emotionally powerful Spanish Civil War novel with ambiguous, human characters and a devastating ending; readers value its spare prose and its study of human nature, and often pair it with Orwell's Homage to Catalonia.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
High in the pine forests of the Spanish Sierra, a guerrilla band prepares to blow up a vital bridge. Robert Jordan, a young American volunteer, has been sent to handle the dynamiting. There, in the mountains, he finds the dangers and the intense comradeship of war. And there he discovers Maria, a young woman who has escaped from Franco's rebels.
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What Hacker News says
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…Mussolini as backers, the Republicans had Stalin. Of course, both sides (yes, both sides) had good people that were stuck in the middle of it for whatever reason. Hemingway's account in the middle of For Whom the Bell Tolls where the rebels go into the town and murder priests and other supporters of the conservatives really struck me. Hemingway actually fought with the left and was sympathetic to them, but even he was aware…
on ““Just Like at Madrid, Comrades”” ↗…Hemingway bender after not having read much fiction in a while (sort of a gray area for these novels since a lot of it is based on Hemingway's experiences during the wars); I would highly recommend: For whom the bell tolls & A farewell to arms Out of those two, I liked For Whom The Bell Tolls a little bit better.
on “Ask HN: Summer Reading Recommendations?” ↗…Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee - http://www.amazon.com/Kill-Mockingbird-Harper-Lee/dp/0446310... The Catcher In The Rye - J.D. Salinger - http://www.amazon.com/Catcher-Rye-J-D-Salinger/dp/0316769487 For Whom the Bell Tolls - Ernest Hemingway - http://www.amazon.com/Whom-Bell-Tolls-Ernest-Hemingway/dp/06... For non-fiction it really depends on what you're looking for but I really enjoyed Joel Bakan's The Corporation and…
on “Ask HN: Book recommendations?” ↗Tolkien's ring trilogy, Eddison's Mistress of Mistress's, and Hemingway's For Whom the Bell Tolls
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite books?” ↗…and it's really up to the reader to decide what they like. I didn't like Tender is the Night too much, and I love Hemingway's novels more than his stories (generally), chiefly The Sun Also Rises and For Whom the Bell Tolls. Do I know better than you or do famous critics know better than me? I don't think so.
on “H.L. Mencken Reviews the Great Gatsby (1925)” ↗> I love Hemingway's novels more than his stories (generally), chiefly The Sun Also Rises and For Whom the Bell Tolls. I think it's in some ways unfortunate the way we have high school students ready things like A Farewell to Arms, maybe For Whom the Bell Tools, or Old Man and the Sea, rather than for example, moving…
on “H.L. Mencken Reviews the Great Gatsby (1925)” ↗There are a number of famous english speaking authors that have done pretty good work around it. On non fiction you have "The spanish civil war" by Thomas Hugh. On the fiction side you have "For whom the bell tolls" by Ernst hemingway and "Homage to Catalonia" by George Orwell
on “The Basque Country’s Mondragón Corporation is the largest industrial co-op” ↗For Whom the Bell Tolls I've been on a Hemingway kick ever since.
on “Ask HN: What was the best book you read in 2013?” ↗The Old Man and The Sea, For Whom The Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
on “Ask HN: What are some must read books?” ↗…existence, so wasting one feels like cramming an entire bar of imported Spanish 70% Artisan Chocolate in your mouth and washing it down with soda. Why would you do that??? Take Sordo on the Hill from For Whom the Bell Tolls. It's just a few pages about these guys shooting at each other, but there's so much crammed in there. You learn an awful lot about that guy, his feelings about this war, why he's fighting it, how he…
on “Sorry, You Can’t Speed Read” ↗I wonder what kind of authors / flippant novels hackers around these parts read.. My favourite would probably Count of Monte Cristo (Bridge of San Louis Rey a close second + for whom the bell tolls), what are yours (non-technical)?
on “Do Hackers read *other* books?” ↗If you like the recount of the spanish war in "For whom the bell tolls", read "Homage to catalonia" by George Orwell. It's one of the best books I ever read.
on “Sorry, You Can’t Speed Read” ↗Who's comparing? It is a great book. It both influences and is influenced by other great books. I agree that it's pointless to ask whether "Lord of the Rings" or "For Whom the Bell Tolls" is the best, but I don't think anyone here is doing that.
on “The Fantastic World of Professor Tolkien (1956)” ↗A lot of Hemmingway is deeply touching work. I found both The Old Man and the Sea and For Whom The Bell Tolls to be excellent studies of human nature.
on “Ask HN: What was the one book that you read and it actually changed your life?” ↗I'm currently re-reading For Whom The Bell Tolls. It's important to strip away the legend surrounding the author and appreciate the writing itself, and it's clear Hemmingway is a great writer.
on “For Whom the Bull Tolls” ↗