Like Absinthe

The Garden of Eden

Woman with the Basket (1927)
by Juan Gris (1887 - 1927)

After failing to enjoy Garden of Eden as much as she thought she would, a friend of mine wrote to air her grievances and ask for advice about Hemingway:

"The best thing about this book is its cover! I was taken by the great art. And I adore baskets. But like baskets -- with naturally occurring holes -- this book has some miscues. It has some lapses for sure -- no wonder -- Hemingway had worked on it on and off for feefteen years (that’s purposely done)! That’s right! I have a right to be angry because women don’t behave as he portrays! And during those same 15 years, surprisingly, he also wrote and published The old Man and the Sea. I’m already sick of the absinthe and martinis coming from every other page -- brace yourself; drinks on you! So much more annoyed than I would be out on the sea with the old man."

My honest advice: I think it’s safe to say that you have given this book a fair chance, and you should now feel free to put it down without finishing! In fact, you are free to move on to another author completely and leave Hemingway behind. You gave it a try — that’s more than most!

I agree that it’s a lovely painting on the cover! I must confess that I have never read this novel, and per your review, I won’t be bumping it up to the top of my reading list!

It’s funny you should say that about absinthe because my favorite line in all of the Hemingway that I have read (I certainly cannot claim to have read the complete works) is from the short story "Hills Like White Elephants," in which the girl wants to try an absinthe flavored drink called “Anis Del Toro.”

When the drinks come, her boyfriend asks how it tastes.

"It tastes like licorice," the girl said and put the glass down.

“That's the way with everything."

“Yes," said the girl. "Everything tastes of licorice. Especially all the things you've waited so long for, like absinthe."

The boy is trying to pressure the girl into terminating her pregnancy, and those lines totally capture the sadness of their relationship (and accurately sum up my feelings about black licorice).

Another sad one is "In Another Country," about soldiers getting experimental rehab for lost limbs. The story concludes with another unforgettable one - liner from Hemingway: “I am utterly unable to resign myself.” That breaks my heart every time.

You can pull these stories up for free on line if you want to read them (click titles above). They are very short, but also very sad. Still, I would recommend them, and you might like them more than “Garden of Eden.”

The sadness of Hemingway's wounded vet reminds me of this line from Cicero (106 - 43 BC), concerning the death of his adult daughter, who died shortly after childbirth: " . . . he read everything that the Greek philosophers had written about overcoming grief, ‘but my sorrow defeats all consolation.’ ”

Another sad one:
"A Clean, Well - Lighted Place"

The Van Gogh paintings capture the tone:

Café Terrace at Night, 1888
by Vincent Van Gogh (1853 - 1890)

Exterior vs Interior