You could take an entire university course just studying the works of Ernest Hemingway, so trying to sum up his importance in a blog post would be both presumptive and trite. But if, for some reason, you aren't already familiar with Hemingway's work, this short story might be a good place to start.
Big Two-Hearted River is, at best, a short story - not even a novelette. But combined with a foreword by John N. MacLean, which is almost as long as the story, we do get a novella-length work.
This story (a Nick Adams story, for those of you might find that interesting) is possibly the epitome of a nature love story. Nick, a WW1 veteran, needs to clear his head and so he goes away to camp and fish the Big Two-Hearted River.
And that's really all there is to it. No big plot. Just man and nature as simply as possible. This is emphasized by Hemingway's sparse language and short, clipped sentences.
It had been a hard trip. He was very tired. That was done. He had made his camp. He was settled. Nothing could touch him. It was a good place to camp. He was there, in the good place. ... It was quite dark outside. It was lighter in the tent.
While I appreciate the simplicity of this, I also have to say that the Foreword might have been more interesting. The Foreword was about something ... it was about the story. The story, however, is not about something ... it's more a meditation. At the same time, though, it captures the mood of being outdoors, camping and fishing.
This special edition, recognizing the 100th anniversary of the story's first publication, is beautifully illustrated with black and white art by Chris Wormell. It is worth buying the book for the artwork.
Looking for a good book? Those who fish, camp, or generally enjoy the outdoors will find a connection with Ernest Hemingway's story Big Two-Hearted River, now being republished in a new centennial edition.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

First published in 1925; published as a Centennial Edition by Mariner Books on May 9, 2023

I probably read this story in college. I know I read In Our Time, the collection that featured this and one other Nick Adams story. I remember the other Adams story but not this one. That doesn't surprise me, as I don’t recall much about my college years. I attribute that to my declining memory rather than collegiate substance abuse, but the two might be related.

The story is well regarded by Hemingway fans. It is probably beloved by the editors of Field & Stream. Sports Illustrated praised it as the greatest story about the outdoors in literary history. I have a guarded appreciation of Hemingway, but I’m more of a Faulkner guy. This centennial edition includes some beautifully detailed pen-and-ink sketches/engravings of fishing and camping scenes by Chris Wormell, as well as a “revelatory forward” by John MacLean, whose dad wrote A River Runs Through It.

The story is simple. Nick backpacks his way into the woods, makes camp, catches soot-covered grasshoppers to use as bait, and fishes for trout. Sometimes he wins, sometimes the trout wins. That’s the story.

Along the way, Nick reports on his state of mind. Hiking induces weariness that helps him sleep despite his troubled thoughts. We don’t know why he’s troubled but in the context of other Nick Adams stories, he’s probably fretting about a girl. Nick becomes happy, or at least content, as the tranquility of solitude eases his mind. When a large fish gets away, he centers himself in nature, sitting on a log with the sun at his back, and waits until the feeling of disappointment leaves. “It was all right now.”

The revelatory forward explains that Hemingway wrote the story at the age of 25 when he was a struggling writer in Paris following his ambulance driving years in Italy. MacLean notes that critics at the time (but not the “perceptive” ones who were mostly Hemingway’s friends) complained that nothing happens. Far be it from me to echo that same unperceptive complaint. Critics apparently argue about the meaning of the story’s metaphors (grasshoppers are soot-covered because of a fire that represents, well, something). My heretical thought is that Hemingway described what he saw and wasn't being metaphonrical at all. Who knows? MacLean suggests that the story is about a journey of the spirit. I’ll buy that.

I can’t deny Hemingway’s impact on American literature, even if I don’t fully appreciate it. This book might be a good gift for true Hemingway admirers and for outdoorsy types who like to wade into frigid streams to fish for trout when they could get a tasty grouper in a seafood restaurant. Yeah, I know, it isn’t the same. It’s a big two-hearted world with plenty of room for readers who like Hemingway and readers who wonder what all the fuss is about.

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The Review

Big Two-Hearted River felt like taking a breath of crisp and fresh air in the morning. After spending time reading some books with gruesome topics, this short story was a peaceful cleanse to my soul. I would recommend reading the short story first and then reading the foreword after. I got to enjoy the story with my own perspective first, and then revisited it from a more critical point of view.

If I could describe Big-Two Hearted River, I would say it is about the healing power of being in nature and solitude. The descriptions of the scenery and unembellished tasks of camping made me want to go out for a hike. There is just something about being in a quiet place separated from the busy world that just makes all life's worries fall away. At least that's how I feel whenever I go for a hike, so I could relate to Nick's experience of going on a camping trip by himself.

Considering that Nick is a WWI veteran returning home, the story is much more impactful. After experiencing so much violence, death and noise, I would imagine that there is alot of mental hardship that Nick is suffering from. This trip probably helped him stop thinking about his trauma and focus on being present in the moment. The moments that directly pointed out that Nick felt happy, and that he hadn't felt unhappy in all day, tugged at my heartstrings. It made me wonder what kind of mental or emotional state he must have been in before.

Final thoughts

Big Two-Hearted River is a wonderful story and I valued Hemingway's minimalistic style of writing. I picked up this book at exactly the right time in my life. It made me slow down in my busy life and appreciate the small things around me. The modest illustrations of this edition also added another layer of beauty to experience.

How do you review a piece of literature by Ernest Hemingway? Here goes.... First, this is a short story, and an early one by Hemingway. There is a preface by another author tacked on the front. The author's father wrote "A River Runs Through It," and actually knows how to fish, so that's where he comes at this story. I read the short story first, then went back and read the preface.

Truth to tell, I was underwhelmed by this short story. The imagery of passing through a burned out town before camping and fishing was startling and grabbed my attention. However, the fishing imagery was lost on me. The story ended, and I thought, "was that IT?" Maybe it's because I don't fish. After I read the preface, I learned that Hemingway's technique was to tell you far less of the facts of the story than most writers, and I appreciate and maybe learned something from this approach. However, I just didn't get a lot out of the story, aside from the imagery.

Recommended? Nah, I don't think so (unless you're into fishing).

I received this book for free from Netgalley. That did not influence this review.

Big Two-Hearted River is a novella by Ernest Hemingway, being re-released in an illustrated Centennial Edition. This is one of the Nick Adams stories and it has the typical Heminway-esque voice and style.

Nick arrives by train to the burned-out town of Seney, a place near the Big Two-Hearted River where he has fly-fished before and intends to fish again. He is alone. The destroyed town is deserted. Nick strikes out on foot for the river. When he finds a good spot, he sets up camp. In the morning, he rises early and goes fishing. The End.

The setting is given in minute, attentive, loving detail. The particulars of the camp are meticulous. And the descriptions of fishing are so step-by-step that they could be a how-to manual. Throughout, the reader can feel Nick’s quiet satisfaction in an activity done well.

If you’re a fan of Hemingway, this classic short work will be deeply satisfying. If you’ve never read his work and are curious about it, this is a fine introduction. One of the best things about this particular edition is the insightful foreword by John N. Maclean, who gives a strong, straightforward analysis of what Hemingway likely intended the story to illustrate, which gives the novella added punch.

I first read Big Two-Hearted River in 2019, within The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway, where it was included in halves, as Part I and Part II. This new version doesn't seem changed, but it does include some illustrations and an extensive Foreward in which John Maclean describes his lifelong fascination with this poetic story, a fascination that he shared with his own father. Hemingway had published the two pieces based on bits he'd written and perhaps rewritten long ago, it is literally about Nick Adams camping along, and fly fishing in, a river. But many enthusiasts have always insisted there is more to the story than that, perhaps heartbreak or PTSD. Mclean quotes one critic saying "No war, just the fishing" but the point of this new publication is Mclean's having discovered extensive proof of what Hemingway had actually created between the lines.

I have long had a love-hate relationship with Ernest Hemingway’s writing. Since I was first introduced to Hemingway in my high school American Lit class (long, long ago), I have been intrigued with the power of his sparse - yet pitch-perfect - writing. The subject matter? Not so much. But I do - very much - appreciate his writing style.

As a Michigander myself, and as the wife of a trout fishing enthusiast (I don’t fish myself, but I am well acquainted with the passion), I was eager to read an advance copy of the centennial edition of Hemingway’s Big Two-Hearted River. I thoroughly enjoyed this short story. The well-researched introduction by John Mclean (nearly as long as the short story itself) provided helpful context and added to my enjoyment. The engravings by Chris Wormell are wonderful, and certainly enhance this new edition.

I will look forward to purchasing a hard copy of the book after publication. (It deserves a place in any trout fisherman’s library.)

Thank you to Mariner Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on May 9th, 2023.

Originally 4 stars, but upgrading to 5 stars.
- I've always wanted to read Ernest Hemingway, but never got around to it
- Ernest Hemingway writing is very beautiful.
- The forward by John Maclean is probably as long as the Ernest Hemingway story; very interesting and well researched.
- This is the Centennial Edition; in itself is amazing
- This edition includes beautiful illustrations by Chris Wormell

Thank you to NetGalley for making the advance copy available in exchange for an honest review. Publication date is 09 May 2023. Publisher is Mariner Books.

The centennial edition with forward from John N. Maclean and engravings by Chris Wormell. Hemingway wrote several stories with Nick Adams as the protagonist, this is the first. A short novel in his usual spare style and short sentences with little in the way of adjectives/adverbs, delivered in a rapid pop pop pop delivery. Almost as important as the story is the forward, especially for those reading Hemingway for the first time; I would recommend reading the story first though so you get it as Hemingway intended and then read the forward for clarify style and meaning. This isn’t the first time I have read this story and probably won’t mBe my last. It’s not just a short story about fly fishing in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

Great new edition of a fantastic work by Hemingway. I will definately be ordering for my library. Great!

Although I am not a big fan of Earnest Hemingway the man, his writing is succinct and superb. A classic, this book is well represented and illustrated in good taste. For those with even a passing interest in fishing, this long story offers a rich insight into the natural world of a young outdoorsman. You feel as if you are present sitting on the bank of the river with Nick.

Big Two-Hearted River
The Centennial Edition
by Ernest Hemingway

A gorgeous new centennial edition of Ernest Hemingway’s landmark short story of a veteran’s solo fishing trip in Michigan’s rugged Upper Peninsula illustrated with specially commissioned artwork by master engraver Chris Wormell and featuring a revelatory foreword by John N. Maclean.

A brilliant book then and now. Of course, I enjoyed the book. I always loved Hemingway's way of writing ...as he was painting the novel how it was . This was looking back at one grand story of more than fly fishing.