MEDIA RELEASES

Dominican University’s Book Club will discuss Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms on Wednesday, October 24 at 7:00 p.m. as part of the Oak Park/River Forest/Forest Park Big Read community program. The discussion will take place in Lewis Lounge which is located on the main campus, 7900 W. Division St., River Forest.

Set against the brutal and chaotic backdrop of World War I, A Farewell to Arms is the tragic love story of Frederic Henry and Catherine Barkley. Frederic, an American ambulance driver serving on the Italian front, becomes involved with Catherine, an English nurse’s aid mourning the recent death of her fiancé. Their growing love coincides with the mounting pressure on the front, where Italian forces are losing ground every day. Considered by many critics to be the greatest American novel to emerge from World War I, A Farewell to Arms explores the themes of love, pain and loyalty against the sweeping destruction of war. One of Hemingway’s most famous books, A Farewell to Arms has been the basis of three feature films—a 1932 version starring Gary Cooper and Helen Hayes; a 1957 version starring Rock Hudson and Jennifer Jones; and a 1996 version starring Chris O’Donnell and Sandra Bullock.

For more information about Dominican University’s Book Club, contact Mary Pat Fallon at (708) 524-6602 or at mpfallon@dom.edu.

Founded in 1901, Dominican University is a comprehensive, coeducational Catholic institution offering bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Dominican offers 50 undergraduate academic programs in the Rosary College of Arts and Sciences and 17 graduate programs through the Graduate School of Library and Information Science, the Brennan School of Business, the School of Education, the Graduate School of Social Work, and the Institute for Adult Learning. In the 2008 issue of America’s Best Colleges, U.S. News & World Report again ranked Dominican University in the top tier of Midwest master’s level universities and as a “best value” for the tenth consecutive year.