Men Without Women

First published in 1927, Men Without Women represents some of Hemingway's most important and compelling early writing. In these fourteen stories, Hemingway begins to examine the themes that would occupy his later works: the casualties of war, the often uneasy relationship between men and women, sport and sportsmanship. In Banal Story, Hemingway offers a lasting tribute to the famed matador Maera. In Another Country tells of an Italian major recovering from war wounds as he mourns the untimely death of his wife. The Killers is the hard-edged story about two Chicago gunmen and their potential victim. Nick Adams makes an appearance in Ten Indians, in which he is presumably betrayed by his Indian girlfriend, Prudence. And Hills Like White Elephants is a young couple's subtle, heart-wrenching discussion of abortion. Pared down, gritty, and subtly expressive, these stories show the young Hemingway emerging as America's finest short story writer.