English Pronunciation Audio

Hemingway's Pulitzer Prize-winning classic

The Old Man and the Sea is one of Hemingway's most enduring works. Told in language of great simplicity and power, It is the story of an old Cuban fisherman, down on his luck, and his supreme ordeal—a relentless, agonizing battle with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf Stream. Here Hemingway recasts, in strikingly contemporary style, the classic theme of courage in the face of defeat, of personal triumph won from loss. Written in 1952, this hugely successful novella confirmed his power and presence in the literary world and played a large part in his winning the 1954 Nobel Prize for literature .

Ernest Hemingway did more to change the style of English prose than any other writer in the twentieth century, and for his efforts he was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1954. Hemingway wrote in short, declarative sentences and was known for his tough, terse prose. Publication of The Sun Also Rises and A Farewell to Arms immediately established Ernest Hemingway as one of the greatest literary lights of the twentieth century. As part of the expatriate community in 1920s Paris, the former journalist and World War I ambulance driver began a career that lead to international fame. Hemingway was an aficionado of bullfighting and big'game hunting, and his main protagonists were always men and women of courage and conviction, who suffered unseen scars, both physical and emotional. He covered the Spanish Civil War, portraying it in fiction in his brilliant novel For Whom the Bell Tolls , and he subsequently covered World War II. His classic novella The Old Man and the Sea won the Pulitzer Prize in 1953. He died in 1961.

One of the most prolific and versatile of motion picture actors, Donald Sutherland has appeared in more than one hundred films, including Robert Altman's M.A.S.H ., Robert Redford's Ordinary People , Alan Pakula's Klute , Felllni's Casanova , Pride & Prejudice, Cold Mountain, The Italian Job , and Six Degrees of Separation . Television credits include Commander in Chief , (Golden Globe Nom. ) Human Trafficking , {Golden Globe Nom. ) and Citizen X (Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award).

Narrator Donald Sutherland's reveals the character with many twist and turns, a suprise performance that delves deep, it's the best I've heard. A thrilling adventure that encapsulates more wisdom than entire libraries of self-help. An excellent story that explores in detail the courage, inner battles and confusion of life - well worth the time listening and as a finale to Hemingway's career, a must...

This wonderful book about a simple fisherman and his struggle is 'a tale about the positive and negative aspects of the human condition'. The narrative structure is simple and appeals to the heart. It starts on land with the old man having faced eighty four days of bad days at sea. His struggle against his bad luck, with nature and with life itself is symbolic of everyman'a struggle against the odds of life. By strength of his will and skill he overcomes odds and keeps his spirits up. The characters are etched well , the old man is proud and stubbornly positive. The boy is loyal and loving. The prose is economical and the descriptions sharp.