On this day in 1953 Ernest Hemingway was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his novel, “The Old Man and the Sea”. It would be the last major novel to be published in Hemingway’s lifetime and was cited by the Nobel Committee as reason for him winning the 1954 Nobel Prize for Literature. The novel is a timeless tale of struggle, aging, youth, and the human psyche. It can be said that many people think Hemingway’s writing style is like no other, that it certainly evokes a different perspective for the viewer, his writing style is seen as so iconic that there are now even certain software packages, like this hemingway app that can allow you to write in Hemingway’s style for yourself!
Hemingway wrote “The Old Man and the Sea” in 1951. It has been suggested by critics that it was written in response to reactions to his previous work, “Across the River and Through the Woods”. A mere 127 pages long it was published by Scribner’s in 1952 with a first printing of only 50,000 copies. The story first appeared in Life Magazine’s September 1st issue which sold five million copies in only two days. To date the book has sold over 13 million copies worldwide since it first appeared in 1952 and has been translated into dozens of languages. The book has never gone out of print. True first edition copies of the book in fine condition sell for between $600-$1200 and are highly collectible.
The success of the novel cemented Hemingway as canon in American Literature and this novel is still part of most high school English curriculums. It has been adapted several times for both the big screen and television. We have copes for sale at Landmark Books as well as copies of most of his other novels. Stop by anytime and check them out!