Ernie the H.

I had a friend in college who loved Hemingway--he called him "Ernie the H." I think it was my friend's way of being witty and ironic, maybe like Hemingway. I've read a few Hemingway novels and short stories over the years and enjoyed them. I like the way he wrote. I am reading The Sun Also Rises right now. It's a nice novel, maybe Hemingway at his best. I teach Spanish and am interested in Spain, so I thought this would be a good one to read.

I also have been a book editor for quite a few years, so when I read books I notice the way they have been edited and proofread, the design, type of paper, and other details that other people don't pay attention to. Whenever I read a book I try to catch at least one error or typo. That's usually not too hard. It's a rare book that doesn't have at least one typo. The copy of the book that I am reading, which is published by Scribner and is in its 27th printing, has an incorrect expression in Spanish on page 132 and a typo on page 133. On page 132 is the Spanish question "Por Ustedes?" A girl delivering telegrams in a Spanish town where Jake Barnes and friends have gone on a fishing trip. She is asking if the telegram is "for you (plural)." It should be "Para ustedes?" The distinction between the use of por and para is tricky. They both mean "for" but in this case Hemingway used the wrong one. Now for the typo on page 133, the facing page. An Englishman named Harris says "It's remarkable place," omitting the article. I would attribute the error in Spanish to Hemingway and the missing article to the proofreader. These are just small details. The novel is great, very well written. Ernie the H. may not have spoken perfect Spanish, but he sure could write.