Tuesday, July 25, 2006
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
I never thought I would like this book, and I really don't know why. It was probably because it is one of the books that is required reading in high school literature classes. Of course when you're in high school, it isn't cool to like literature, so peer pressure predisposes against liking any required book. I don't remember reading it in high school, so it may have been that it was a choice. If that was the case, I know that I read The Scarlet Letter, Fahrenheit 451, and To Kill a Mockingbird--no Gatsby.We read Gatsby for the reading group that I lead. I picked it because I knew that it was supposed to be one of the greatest American novels ever written. I don't know how it got that ranking, but I didn't think it could be that good. I was wrong.
The Great Gatsby is the story of people searching for fulfillment in the pleasure of society. Set in the 1920's, it details the decadent jazz parties and New York high society that boomed before the Great Depression. Jay Gatsby is searching for his lost love Daisy, who is married to Tom, who is having an affair with Myrtle. It seems that everyone uses relationships only to get something for themselves. Gatsby throws wild parties where hundreds of people come, but no one cares about him, except his neighbor Nick, who is the narrator. Eventually things come to a head between Gatsby, Tom and Daisy on a trip to New York in the sweltering heat of summer. Tragedy strikes twice, which brings the book to a morose and consequential ending.
Fitzgerald does in nine chapters what Dan Brown and John Grisham take 500 pages to do: tell a great story with complex characters and great action. I had this underlying thought that a book written in the 20's couldn't be good (a truly arrogant attitude!) However, Gatsby is an absolute pleasure to read--I couldn't put it down. It truly deserves it's ranking as one of the greatest American novels.
Rating: 3 Stars
Thursday, July 13, 2006
The Winter of Our Discontent by John Steinbeck
I don't like reading sermons. I really don't even like listening to them on CD. That probably sounds hypocritical since I'm a minister and actually preach them from time to time. Of course, I like listening to good ones live.John Steinbeck's last novel (I'm pretty sure as Travels with Charley was published in '62) was published in 1961 and is a veiled commentary on the state of America as it enters the turbulent 1960's. Ethan Hawley is a middle aged stalwart of honesty even though he has lost his business and is the clerk in the grocery store he once owned. His family and friends constantly lament that they are poor and speculate how life would be nice again if they could become rich. Eventually, Ethan begins to believe that money is the answer to his problems and devises a plot to reacquire the store and come into money. In order to do this, he has to compromise all his principles and use those around him to get what he wants. The story has a surprise twist at the end as Ethan learns that his children have become the very thing that he has also become.
All of which brings me back to the idea of sermons. Steinbeck looked around at what America had become and didn't like it (or what he had become and didn't like it!) As far as the message of the book, it is of course right on. We are a nation of people who believe that material possessions and influence are the keys to happiness.
Literary wise, The Winter of Our Discontent is a mixed bag. As always, Steinbeck creates very interesting characters and overly describes the geography. While the story takes too long to develop (you're halfway through before you get a hint of Ethan's sinister plot), once the action starts, it really moves along. The main downfall, though, is the long sections of moralistic "thoughts" that run through Ethan's mind. They are nothing more than Steinbeck sermons. While they are right on the money, they really slow the pace of the book.
In the final analysis, the book sounds like a grumpy old man yelling at everyone from his front porch (or Miss Dubose from To Kill a Mockingbird.) Certainly not one of Steinbeck's best efforts, but then again, his duds are miles ahead of everyone else.
Rating: 2 Stars
