A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
Set during World War I, the novel follows an American ambulance driver in the Italian army and his love affair with a British nurse. The story is a first-person account of the protagonist's experiences in war and his struggle to survive amidst chaos and destruction. The narrative explores themes of love, war, and the fragility of life, culminating in a tragic ending that underscores the futile nature of war and the inevitable suffering it brings.
The 115th greatest book of all time
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Total Points: 2562
This book was first published in 1929
26 Lists
- score: 192 -- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die - 2006 (Weight: 192)
- score: 160 -- Best Books (Fiction, Prose) : Experts Choose Their Favourites - 1996 (Weight: 160)
- score: 152 -- 100 Life-Changing Books - 2006 (Weight: 152)
- score: 137 -- 100 Books of Classical and Modern Foreign Literature - 2013 (Weight: 136)
- score: 128 -- Books that Shaped the Century - 2020 (Weight: 128)
- score: 121 -- Koen Book Distributors Top 100 Books of the Past Century - 1999 (Weight: 120)
- score: 116 -- Radcliffe's 100 Best Novels - 1998 (Weight: 112)
- score: 112 -- The Modern Library | 100 Best Novels - 1999 (Weight: 112)
- score: 112 -- 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read - 2009 (Weight: 112)
- score: 112 -- The Great American Novels - 2024 (Weight: 112)
- score: 112 -- Inteliquest's World's 100 Greatest Books of All-Time - 1993 (Weight: 112)
- score: 111 -- 100 Essential Books - 2009 (Weight: 108)
- score: 100 -- Big Read (Hungarian) - 2005 (Weight: 100)
- score: 96 -- 100 Best Books - 2010 (Weight: 96)
- score: 96 -- Select 100 - 2015 (Weight: 96)
- score: 92 -- Masterpieces of World Literature - 1991 (Weight: 92)
- score: 80 -- Recommended Books - 2017 (Weight: 80)
- score: 72 -- The Complete 500: OCLC - 2024 (Weight: 72)
- score: 68 -- The Novel 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Novels of All Time - 2004 (Weight: 68)
- score: 68 -- How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Reading List - 2003 (Weight: 68)
- score: 68 -- The Book of Great Books: A Guide to 100 World Classics - 2001 (Weight: 68)
- score: 68 -- The College Board: 101 Great Books Recommended for College-Bound Readers - 2002 (Weight: 68)
- score: 60 -- Harold Bloom's The Western Canon - 1994 (Weight: 60)
- score: 52 -- The 100 Greatest Books Ever Written - 1979 (Weight: 52)
- score: 44 -- One Hundred Best American Novels, 1770 to 1985 - 2014 (Weight: 44)
- score: 28 -- 1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List - 2018 (Weight: 28)