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
