o to dance the charleston & bootleg whiskey. ( )

I felt as though I was living in the 1920's while reading this book. Fitzgerald uses subtle descriptive clues that simply transported me there without the need of verbose descriptions. I don't know if it was intentional or not, but I felt the dialog seemed to be written as though the story was meant for the screen or the stage. This could be a bias of me associating the 1920's with old black and white movies made in the 40's and 50's though. It didn't detract from the story at all though. In fact, it made it more interesting for me. ( )

I read this back in high school, but I don’t remember it having the impact on me that it had on me now.This has to be one of the best books I’ve ever read.Gatsby is America. He comes from poor stock, people to whom he is only loosely connected. Gatsby is a self-made man, but don’t look too closely at how he made his fortune. Gatsby is fascinated by the beautiful, the rich, the flashy, and his goal in life becomes to be part of that world. At his core, Gatsby is deeply lonely and has no one with whom he can share his vision and his dreams. All around him disappoint him in the end. ( )

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald presents ongoing ideas hopes and dreams, struggle and conflict, and big and little. My favorite distinction made is this classification between the East and the West. This novel represents the time period where wealth and fame were all that anybody wanted. Nick moved from Minnesota to come to New York to get into business and making money. It is the perfect depiction of the roaring twenties in which prosperity in social surroundings and jobs were the main focus. Fitzgerald shows the lack of moral standards of the people living in New York. I was surprised to see this, but they don't care for their wives of families, and people will do illegal actions to become wealthy. Nicks action of moving back to Minnesota at the end reveals his wants for a civilized home. He realized the decaying society after witnessing his best friend die, Tom's girl die, and nobody caring about anything. I was personally disgusted to see everyone just wanting to dress up and drink at Gatsby's beautiful mansion for one and only benefit, to climb up the social ladder. These so called "friends" of his didn't even show up to his funeral. But this is what some people live for. Some people live for the money and fame.

6/10.A portrait of the Jazz Age in all of its decadence and excess, Jay Gatsby embodies some of Fitzgerald's--and his country's--most abiding obsessions: money, ambition, greed, and the promise of new beginnings. ( )

I know I read this at some point in my life for school but couldn't remember anything about except that Robert Redford was in the movie version. So I decided to listen to it while I excercised.

I loved the way F. Scott Fitzgerald seemed to capture the decadence of the 20's and also the disparity money brings between people. All of the characters where well developed and evoked emotion. I was surprised by the selfishness of some of the characters and even more surprised that people could be selfish and yet I could still feel sorry for them.

I loved the innocence of Gatsby, and was saddened by the fact that money bought him friends while he was alive and yet none of them could be bothered with him when the party was over. ( )

Only further toward the end does this book get interesting. There are about 150 pages of character development, and 30 pages of climax. I loved the well written character of Jay Gatsby.
The book's plot is indistinct - it could be described many ways. I found that "The Great Gatsby" is not so much about what happens in it, but who it is about.
A great classic. ( )

Re-read this after about 30 years and it still grips me. The plot and themes are well known but it was the almost mesmerising quality of the writing that intrigued this time: "The last swimmers have come in from the beach now and are dressing upstairs; the cars from New York are parked five deep in the drive, and already the halls and salons and verandas are gaudy with primary colors, and hair bobbed in strange new ways, and shawls beyond the dreams of Castile. The bar is in full swing, and floating rounds of cocktails permeate the garden outside, until the air is alive with chatter and laughter, and casual innuendo and introductions forgotten on the spot, and enthusiastic meetings between women who never knew each other's names." ( )

This type of encounter happens to everybody in life, but only a few have the ability embrace the fact and make use of it. ( )

Then wear the gold hat, if that will move her;
If you can bounce high, bounce for her too,
Till she cry ‘Lover, gold-hatted, high-bouncing lover,
I must have you!’

Thomas Parke D’Invilliers

This poem in essence sums up the story of Jay Gatsby, the protagonist of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.

Published in 1925, The Great Gatsby was not popular in its own time (it sold less than 25,000 copies during the remaining fifteen years of Fitzgerald's life, I believe). It received its status as an American classic, after being republished in the 40’s/50’s.

It was ranked second in the Modern Library's list of the 100 Best Novels of the 20th Century.

The book describes the Jazz Age. As the economy soared during the 1920’s and Prohibition came in to effect, the rich led a life which seemed like an endless party. With Prohibition came the rise of organized crime. Bootlegging became a fast and easy way to make a quick buck. The story is said to be a critique of ‘the American Dream’. Fitzgerald criticized the self-indulgence of the Jazz Age, the uncontrolled greed and the lack of morality in it all.

But for me, the heart of the story is the man Gatsby. His obsessive love for Daisy, his dream and the futility of it all wrings my heart every time I read this book.

There is something so miserable about Gatsby throwing one lavish party after another, hoping each day that Daisy would show up at one of them.

Gatsby is a strange creation. He triumphs at everything he sets out to do and yet he looses. He wins and yet he is defeated and betrayed by everyone.

Among the other characters, Nick Carraway stands out. He is the perfect narrator. His personality fits just right, not too strong, not too weak and definitely not irritating. It feels as though his observations (as an outsider) about the lives of the rich and famous living in the neighborhood are just what the reader’s would be if the reader was present there. The unusual friendship between Nick and Gatsby is especially touching.

I have almost no complaint with the story. But the relationship between Nick Carraway and Jordan Baker does seem unnecessary to me.

As for Fitzgerald's writing, it is easy to read and uncomplicated. The narrative flows effortlessly.

The Great Gatsby is ultimately a story about impossible dreams and the price one pays for chasing a dream for too long. A true classic and I highly recommend it.

Long after finishing the book what remains with me is the character of Gatsby and Nick’s final meeting with him,

“ ‘They’re a rotten crowd’, I shouted across the lawn. ‘You’re worth the whole damn bunch put together.’

I’ve always been glad I said that. It was the only compliment I ever gave him…First he nodded politely, and then his face broke into that radiant and understanding smile…His gorgeous pink rag of a suit made a bright spot of colour against the white steps, and I thought of the night when I first came to his ancestral home, three months before. The lawn and drive had been crowded with the faces of those who guessed at his corruption- and he had stood on those steps, concealing his incorruptible dream, as he waved them good-bye.” ( )

Slow start. I wasn't interested in how the rich party (the extravagant but distant host, the lethargic women and the debauchery of men), but later on I thought that this was perhaps necessary to set the mood. The novel builds up to an explosive climax and I finished the book well satisfied and reflective upon the characters and the chain of events. The prose has a contemporary feel that stands the test of time. Perhaps one needs to have experienced a whole wash of emotions in social networking, dating and marriage to really appreciate the plot. But it goes much deeper than that and the significance of "The Great Gatsby is a highly symbolic meditation on 1920s America as a whole, in particular the disintegration of the American dream in an era of unprecedented prosperity and material excess. Fitzgerald portrays the 1920s as an era of decayed social and moral values, evidenced in its overarching cynicism, greed, and empty pursuit of pleasure." [sparknotes] Woow, an eye-opener for me. I think people have good intentions but somewhere down the road, the unexpected happens, temptations are rife, and some people get derailed. ( )

This book leads many lists of classic American literature so I thought I would revisit some 20+ years after last reading. I remembered little other than West Egg and East Egg. The characters have few redeeming values, except for Nick, who we really don't get to know all that well. All are involved in cheating and scheming on some level personal or professional. Sad, really. This is also an example of a movie ruining a book - I can only picture Mia Farrow and Robert Redford in a 1970s version of the 1920s. ( )

Nick Carraway, originally from Minnesota has spent quite a bit of time on the east coast. After fighting in World War Two and going to Yale he decides to spend a year in New York. He winds up living in a bungalow near his second cousin once removed, Daisy and her husband Tom, a man he went to Yale with. He also lives next to door the mysterious Jay Gatsby, who is throwing elaborate parties ever weekend. Tom is the witness to a summer's worth of drama in Long Island with secrets, old loves and huge tempers.

When I picked up The Great Gatsby for the first time four days ago I didn't really know what to excpet. Recentlly many people had told me I would enjoy it, but never gave me a reason why. When I got the book as an early Christmas gift a few days ago I was more interested in what was the big deal with this 'classic' then with the story or the characters but that quickly changed. There is something very simple and beautiful in the way Fitzgerald made these characters. They're all so tragically flawed, but you feel for most of them at one time or another. Gatsby is intriguing, it's hard to tell when he is being honest, but that doesn't really matter, it's just who he is. it's a short book, but it moves quick. It's refershing to see the 1920's in a way that doesn't focus on the family, World War One (well, more than it does) and music. A great read. ( )

Incandescently beautiful portrait of the lovely but fatally flawed nouveau riche of the 1920s in the US (and their hangers on). ( )

Hey, it's me again...'The Great Gatsby'....Remember? From 10th grade? The jeremiad about Jazz Age decadence? The litmus-test for all 20th-century American novels? West Egg? Nick Carraway? Rampant classism and clandestine romance? Remember...?Oh...all you remember is 'West Egg'? For shame...I was a novel before Cliffs Notes were even invented, dude. I suggest you call up Mrs. Mulcahy and ask her to remind you why she assigned me in the first place. ( )

Just didn't work for me - I couldn't connect with any of the characters. I see it's value in American literature, but will never be a favorite of mine. ( )

Langweilig: Leider kann ich mich dem Lob meiner Vorredner nicht ganz (bzw. überhaupt nicht) anschließen. Ich finde dieses Buch einfach langweilig. Es ist keinerlei Spannungsbogen drin, die Figuren sind so schemenhaft gezeichnet, dass sich kein Interesse für sie einstellt. Darüber hinaus weist die Geschichte etliche Sprünge auf, die sie sehr gekünstelt erscheinen lassen.
Dazu ist die Übersetzung an vielen Stellen reichlich holprig.
Warum dieser Roman zur Weltliteratur gezählt wird, erschließt sich mir nicht.

A great read. ( )

The Great Gatsby, is one of those stories that feels as familiar as something that happened to you, yet is so far outside of what could be considered normal interaction. The deadpan Nick, the larger than life Gatsby, and the longing for the first and only love you may ever have. The 1920s come alive in F. Scott Fitzgerald's masterpiece, and upon each subsequent reading each character comes more alive, vibrant, and tragic than before. ( )

I read this book in high school, and hated it. I won't say that about very many books, but I do this one. I wanted to shoot myself in the head after reading it. ( )

This book captures the spirit of the Jazz Age of 1920s America beautifully ( )

A difficult read for me... I found this extremely hard to get into. ( )

This book repeatedly shows up on reading lists, from high school required to "OMG these are the best books evar", so I figured sooner or later I needed to pick it up. To be honest, I'm a little puzzled at its continued popularity. In a nutshell, it's about bored rich people treating each other badly. Some of the imagery is nice, and there is some very funny dialogue, but I found the story largely forgettable. ( )

This book is a favorite of mine. I always love Fitzgerald's depiction of life in the Jazz Age, and this novel is definitely his best. The characters are real and sympathetic, and Nick Carraway is an excellent vehicle for the reader. Gatsby's story truly is a tragic one, captured in a nicely understated way over the course of this novel. ( )

I have read The Great Gatsby several times over the past 30 years and each time I read it I am reminded why it is Fitzgerald’s masterpiece. It has been reviewed a countless number of times by students, scholars, and avid readers like myself, and I apologize if my review is a bit redundant.

The plot is tight, smooth, structured, and incredibly entertaining. Nick Carraway tells the story of his life during the summer of 1922; a time known as the Jazz Age and The Roaring Twenties. Nick is from the mid-west and after graduating from Yale, takes a job in New York City selling bonds. Preferring a more tranquil environment, he finds a small cottage for rent in West Egg on the Long Island Sound. In spite of the fact that the country is in a deep recession and Prohibition is in effect Nick’s next door neighbor, Jay Gatsby, is running “party central” from his large stately mansion; grand banquets, orchestras and dancing, swimming and drinking, and partying until dawn. Nick doesn’t immediately meet his neighbor but the whole West Egg community and the elite East Egg are talking about Gatsby. The enigma Gatsby: is he royalty, a spy, an Oxford Grad, an honored veteran, “he might have killed someone once”, he’s definitely rich, inherited money, or did he make his fortune in oil speculation or drugs? Or is he just a narcissistic, egotistical, flamboyant show-off?

Other characters include Nick’s filthy rich, jaded cousin Daisy Buchanan (from East Egg), her spoiled, brutish, philandering, jock husband Tom, and a common middle-class couple Myrtle and George Wilson who run the local garage and gas station. As Nick attends social gatherings with the Buchanans he simultaneously becomes acquainted with Jay Gatsby. And Nick eventually finds himself reluctantly entangled in Gatsby’s scheme to rekindle a brief prior romantic affair with Daisy.

In many reviews The Great Gatsby is referred to as a prime example of the pursuit of “The American Dream”. Personally, I wouldn’t describe it that way. Gatsby had a chance at the real “American Dream” but it was too conventional and boring for him. This story is about Gatsby’s endeavor to break through the class barrier; to marry a woman of prominence and great wealth. But I would say above all The Great Gatsby is a tragic love story. Gatsby was delusional! He was shallow and superficial, and his life was a farce.

The Great Gatsby is a mere 159 pages; a novella. But what a story! The plot, the characters, and the writing style all contributed greatly towards this literary triumph. F. Scott Fitzgerald was an expert short story writer, and only he could have packed 159 pages so completely with the fast paced intricate plot and the elaborately detailed colorful characters to compose this timeless classic. ( )