Ernest Hemingway's debut novel The Sun Also Rises turns 100 this year, and the museum in the Oak Park house where he was born will mark the centennial with a free public book discussion.
The Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park is hosting "Celebrating 100 Years of The Sun Also Rises: Finding Meaning in a New 'Lost Generation'" on Saturday, July 18, at the Hemingway Birthplace Museum, 339 N. Oak Park Ave. The event is free and requires no tickets, with refreshments available, according to the Foundation's programs page. A start time has not been posted.
Published in 1926, The Sun Also Rises shocked critics with its raw depictions of drinking, desire, and ennui among American expatriates drifting through post-World War I Europe. The Foundation is using the centennial to draw connections between that era's disillusionment and the social landscape of 2026.
Three discussion topics are listed: the post-pandemic generation versus the Lost Generation, digital escapism versus liquid escapism, and "red pill masculinity" versus post-war masculinity.
The discussion is part of the Foundation's ongoing "Hemingway in the 21st Century Book Discussion Series," which previously featured a sold-out talk by Scott Schwar, former Foundation chairman who led the establishment of the birthplace museum.
Copies of The Sun Also Rises and In Our Time are available for purchase ahead of the event at Dandelion Bookshop, the independent store at 139 S. Oak Park Ave. co-owned by Jamie Ericson, or at the museum itself.
The book discussion falls during the broader "Fun Also Rises" birthday weekend, which runs Friday, July 17, through Sunday, July 19. Two other Saturday events share the day: the Kids Running of the Bulls, a parade for children ages 3 and up starting at 10 a.m. at the War Memorial in Scoville Park, and a porch concert featuring Americana artist Rachel Swain from 7 to 9 p.m. Net proceeds from the concert benefit the Foundation's Student Scholarship Fund.
No moderator for the book discussion has been announced. Details and updates are listed on the Foundation's website at hemingwaybirthplace.com.
