The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
Finished August 16, 2026
So I’m writing this post several days after reading because 1. I’ve had other things to do and 2. I didn’t really like it and wanted to let it simmer down before I said anything.
Thinking about it all over again, I still don’t like it.
For a pretty short book it felt very long. Which I think was partially the point, but still. Only a few pages in I was already pretty annoyed with the tone/style; it reminded me of Steinbeck’s “Tortilla Flats” with the “noble, simple Hispanic” vibe. In case you need an example of what I mean:
“I remember,” the old man said. “I know you did not leave me because you doubted.”
“It was papa made me leave. I am a boy and I must obey him.”
“I know,” the old man said. “It is quite normal.”
“He hasn’t much faith.”
“No,” the old man said. “But we have. Haven’t we?”
I could give an entire book full of examples but anyway, the whole thing reads like that.
Now, I will say it isn’t all bad. I don’t do much fishing anymore but as someone who dabbles in a similar sport, some of the old man’s struggles were relatable. The waiting, the bargaining with God, the second-guessing, etc.
Though when the old man kept lamenting that if only the boy were there to help him with his big fish blah blah blah, I thought, “yeah, but if the boy had been there you never would’ve hooked the big fish. That’s how luck works.”
Anyway, by the end it’s pretty depressing and I wasn’t sure what the takeaway was supposed to be and I didn’t look it up because I didn’t want to get more annoyed. Is it to die doing something you theoretically love? Is it that luck determines everything? Not to strive for too much (be too greedy?) because it’ll just get taken away? No matter how hard you work, it’ll all just be destroyed by (literal or figurative) sharks? Do the things you love for yourself and not for others/profit? Retire before you’re old and feeble and nature kicks your ass? It’s better to burn out than fade away? Plan with greater foresight than a flea and take some fucking food and water with you when you go on an outing? Preparation and proper equipment is the difference between failure and success?
The several endorsements on the back cover make it sound like this is a masterpiece full of meaning and hope and inspiration. And maybe it is—and to anyone who reads it that way, that’s awesome. But it just kind of left me with a feeling of pointlessness.
Rating: 2.5 (?) stars.
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