👴 + 🌊

    This is Quintus, and I read The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway. It tells the story about an old Cuban fisherman who has recently been very unlucky and unsuccessful. He goes out to sea in the early fall to try to find a huge fish. He goes far out into the sea, and eventually, his bait attracts a ginormous marlin, which dragged him and his boat around for 3 days straight. In that time he had to find ways to get food for himself, which he did by fishing and eating his catches raw, as well as endure excruciating pain and work without much sleep at all. Finally, on the third day, he managed to catch the fish, which was larger than the boat itself.

    On the long journey home, the catch attracted many sharks, which the old man had to fight to keep them from eating the fish. However, when he finally reached home, the sharks had eaten the catch to the bone, leaving only the fin and the rostrum (the "sword" of a marlin).

    In this book, the old man is friend with a boy. He learned a lot from the old man, and loves him dearly, but his parents made him go to a more "lucky" boat since the old man wasn't very lucky. The old man often wishes the boy was with him as he fished for the marlin. 

    While the beautiful fish was eaten away, the skeleton left behind impressed many fellow fishermen. This book shows the dignity of human effort, even if it is not rewarded, as exemplified in his battles with the marlin and the sharks. It also has a theme of respecting nature, since the man shows deep respect for the powerful fish, as well as a strong attachment to the sea and its creatures.

    I really enjoyed the novel as a whole for its themes and the story. I also liked how short the book was, yet how effective it was at telling the full story while also painting a clear picture of the setting and what was going on. I would recommend the book for people who enjoy a bit of action and want to read a short book.

 - Quintus Kreiger