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A Farewell to Arms Audiobook
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(3.00) - 101,272 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
The definitive edition of the classic novel of love during wartime, featuring all of the alternate endings: “Fascinating…serves as an artifact of a bygone craft, with handwritten notes and long passages crossed out, giving readers a sense of an author’s process” (The New York Times).
Written when Ernest Hemingway was thirty years old and lauded as the best American novel to emerge from World War I, A Farewell to Arms is the unforgettable story of an American ambulance driver on the Italian front and his passion for a beautiful English nurse. Set against the looming horrors of the battlefield—weary, demoralized men marching in the rain during the German attack on Caporetto; the profound struggle between loyalty and desertion—this gripping, semiautobiographical work captures the harsh realities of war and the pain of lovers caught in its inexorable sweep.
Ernest Hemingway famously said that he rewrote the ending to A Farewell to Arms thirty-nine times to get the words right. This edition collects all of the alternative endings together for the first time, along with early drafts of other essential passages, offering new insight into Hemingway’s craft and creative process and the evolution of one of the greatest novels of the twentieth century. Featuring Hemingway’s own 1948 introduction to an illustrated reissue of the novel, a personal foreword by the author’s son Patrick Hemingway, and a new introduction by the author’s grandson Seán Hemingway, this edition of A Farewell to Arms is truly a celebration.
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"loved it, a great book, i love that its written as its spoken, you can actually hear the accent of the italians trying to speak english, i think he wanted to take you completely to the front, and give you the big picture of how it wasm the drinking, the friendships, the lovers, i really enjoyed it."
— Paug (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Hemingway was not known for either unbridled optimism or happy endings, and A Farewell to Arms, like his other novels offers neither. What it does provide is an unblinking portrayal of men and women behaving with grace under pressure, both physical and psychological, and somehow finding the courage to go on in the face of certain loss.”
— Amazon.com, editorial review -
“A novel of great power.”
— Times Literary Supplement (London) -
“Hard, almost metallic, glittering, blinding by the reflections of its hard surface, utterly free of sentimentality.”
— Arnold Bennett, English novelist -
“A most beautiful, moving, and humane book.”
— Vita Sackville-West, English author
A Farewell to Arms Listener Reviews
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Bob Roe, 1/10/2024
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" The love story was kind of annoying, mainly because Hemingway has some really horrid ideas about women. "
— Timothy, 2/15/2014 -
" Pretty depressing love story again. Did nobody in the 1920's believe in happy endings? "
— Dianah, 2/4/2014 -
" The book was solid, but not spectacular (in my opinion). I fully recognize Hemingway's genius, and appreciate much of his other work. I felt like Catherine's character was painfully shallow; she was written in a way that makes it difficult to connect with her. While I've known women like her (the kind who seem very clingy and who don't define themselves as independent beings separate from their partners), her character just lacked something that made her feel real/believable to me. Otherwise, I thought the book was interesting (if it did drag in parts). "
— Sam, 2/1/2014 -
" Couldn't really get into it. The story was interesting but I found it tedious reading. "
— Ruth, 1/29/2014 -
" I liked reading this a second time. My favorite line is when the lead says he doesn't want to abandon the army and Cat says, "It's just the Italian army." "
— Ross, 1/23/2014 -
" A great, well-written, pure book. Interesting dialogue and great story line. I am very impressed. "
— Floris, 1/12/2014 -
" Today I finished reading Ernest Hemingway's novel 'A Farewell to Arms.' One of the most emotionally moving, yet personable and honest portrails of heroism and the war I've ever experienced. I do not typically enjoy war novels, by most means, but this is one of the greatest books I've ever read. "
— Nicolas, 12/29/2013 -
" The thing I love about Hemingway is his ability to make one feel that he is the character, or at least to empathize with the character. This is a very sad novel, for it deals with war and love, the things that move the world. But this is the best fictional work that Hemingway had written. "
— Mark, 12/27/2013 -
" Once again, surprised by liking this book. I never thought I liked the "classic" authors they would make me read in high school, but I liked quite a few. "
— Tori, 12/26/2013 -
" I know it's a classic, I know it was part of an important movement in literature, I just... don't like it. I just can't get into any of the characters in Hemingway's books. "
— Charlie, 11/15/2013 -
" I don't think I've ready anybody that's more poignant as well as easy to read as Hemingway. Recommended. "
— Cesar, 6/30/2013 -
" I can't believe I had never read this, but I'm awfully glad that it wasn't back when I would have been too big of a knucklehead to appreciate it. Now I just have to wait for the effects to wear off: I'm thinking in very short sentences and very manly thoughts. "
— Mike, 6/22/2013 -
" My all time favorite book!! "
— Sarah, 6/9/2013 -
" I love Hemingway so much that I hate him. This book will eat your soul for breakfast. Would give five stars if not for the complete lack of decent female characters. "
— Rachel, 2/13/2013 -
" Poignant love story. "
— Philip, 11/17/2012 -
" My second favorite book of all time. The Great Gatsby being one. Highly recommend to read this great novel. So many great great applicable themes. You will not regret reading this book! "
— Adam, 10/17/2012 -
" Reading the classics is like flipping a coin. I absolutely loved this book and i remember reading this as a freshman and reading it again when i'm older i love it even more. "
— Sarah, 8/6/2012 -
" Had to read this book to teach it to an English class. I must admit it was a real struggle to get through it, just not my cup of tea. "
— Rebecca, 7/29/2012 -
" Arg. Why do lit people make me read this when there are so many other great books out there? "
— Benson, 6/10/2012 -
" My favorite Hemingway book. "
— Tricia, 4/12/2012 -
" Why is this a classic? It's terrible. "
— Lena, 12/23/2011 -
" The pieces Hemingway writes on war and pacifism are brilliant, but are at times overshadowed or even just shouldered out of the way by his obsession with alcohol and his inability to write a woman character that feels like a person. "
— Jake, 11/9/2011 -
" hemingway writes in a unique way, to be sure. i'm just absolutely not convinced that that's a good thing. this book was a slew of disaffecting misery, and i didn't realize that such a thing was even possible! "
— Adriana, 10/3/2011 -
" Ugh... TOO BORING! I know it's supposed to very well written, but I didn't really like it that much... his conversations were NOTHING like actual conversations, and te romance was NOTHING like real romance... and he said it was like his real life?! "
— Star, 9/25/2011 -
" Great book as a whole although certains parts are a bit slow. "
— Dilene, 8/5/2011 -
" It may be a bit slow for modern readers who are more obsessed with the urban fantasy/teen/young adult vampires and werewolves, but Hemingway is masterful in crafting a tender, subtle love story blended with the dark horror of war. A classic in every right. "
— Kourtney, 5/25/2011 -
" I am imagining we will have an interesting book club discussion. But I didn't really enjoy reading this book. It reminded me of why I hate war. It made me think about what is love? Anyway, I am looking forward to discussing the book. "
— Sheridan, 5/24/2011 -
" I usually love the classics but I don't get this one. "
— Aprocuniar, 5/23/2011 -
" Really? <br/>I couldn't even finish the book. <br/>Flat, drab dialogue that kills whatever plot existed. "
— Nina, 5/20/2011 -
" Amazing classic... don't know when I read this, only that I loved it and can't wait to read it again... "
— Lauren, 5/19/2011 -
" I am always confused by Hemingway - his prose is so factual - non-emotional even - but this story was so emotional. I don't understand how he does it, and that is what is so amazing. "
— Amy, 5/14/2011 -
" appreciative of the style, perhaps envious "
— Matthew, 5/12/2011 -
" Sometimes this book is confusing and I lose track of who's talking but overall, it's really sweet. Sad sometimes but what romance doesn't have sad moments? I really like it so far. "
— M, 5/7/2011 -
" I can understand that Hemingway's plot symbolism and understated prose style entice many readers, but it's not my cup of tea. For me, his short stories manage to reach their goals before the understatement becomes tedious. "
— Emily, 5/2/2011
About Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961), born in Oak Park, Illinois, started his career as a writer in a newspaper office in Kansas City at the age of seventeen. After the United States entered the First World War, he joined a volunteer ambulance unit in the Italian army. After his return to the United States, he became a reporter for Canadian and American newspapers. During the twenties, Hemingway became a member of the group of expatriate Americans in Paris, which he described in his first important work, The Sun Also Rises. He also wrote Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls, and The Old Man and the Sea, the story of an old fisherman’s journey, his long and lonely struggle with a fish and the sea, and his victory in defeat. He also wrote short stories that are collected in Men Without Women and The Fifth Column and the First Forty-Nine Stories. Hemingway died in Idaho in 1961.