Summary: A portrait of the Jazz Age in all of its decadence and excess, The Great Gatsby captured the spirit of the author's generation and earned itself a permanent place in American mythology. Self-made, self-invented millionaire Jay Gatsby embodies some of Fitzgerald's--and his country's--most abiding obsessions: money, ambition, greed, and the promise of new beginnings. "Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter--tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther.... And one fine morning--"Gatsby's rise to glory and eventual fall from grace becomes a kind of cautionary tale about the American Dream. It's also a love story, of sorts, the narrative of Gatsby's quixotic passion for Daisy Buchanan. The pair meet five years before the novel begins, when Daisy is a legendary young Louisville beauty and Gatsby an impoverished officer. They fall in love, but while Gatsby serves overseas, Daisy marries the brutal, bullying, but extremely rich Tom Buchanan. After the war, Gatsby devotes himself blindly to the pursuit of wealth by whatever means--and to the pursuit of Daisy, which amounts to the same thing. "Her voice is full of money," Gatsby says admiringly. His millions made, Gatsby buys a mansion across Long Island Sound from Daisy's patrician East Egg address, throws lavish parties, and waits for her to appear. When she does, events unfold with detached, cynical neighbor Nick Carraway acting as chorus throughout. (goodreads.com) My Review: This summer I took it upon myself to try and read more classics. So I picked up the Great Gatsby. I chose this book out of numerous classics simply because it was an short read. Most of the time I do reviews targeted towards young adults but I decided to challenge myself and take on a literary classic. This book starts out in the roaring 20's, full of extravagance and charm, one can't help but fall in love with this time period and dream of experiencing the glitz and glamour of East Egg's elite. At first we're exposed to the living conditions of Nick Carraway, an inhabitant of West Egg, who lives a seemingly comfortable life and is confounded by his neighbor, who he deems "The Great Gatsby". In the beginning Fitzgerald packs his literary masterpiece full of imagery and exposition. Describing the setting in such detail that one would believe they are right there, standing alongside Nick Carraway. The reader is entranced by the decadence and the affluence of the upper class. As I read the book I fell in love with the characters and their quirks, their charisma, and their little charms. The book is beautifully written and I strongly recommend it.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Welcome to my BlogRead, Review and Enjoy Archives
June 2017
|