This novel touches on many issues; war, romantic love(without resorting to nauseating sentiment), culture and mortality. Each one is subtley explored with the incisive touch of Hemingway's pen.
Wherever Henry is, whether he is in an Italian ambulance at the front line, canoodling in a hospital bed, or standing in the rain in a deserted street, the reader always feels that they are right there with him, feeling what he feels, living what he lives.
This is quite simply one of the best books that I have ever read.