The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I was in the mood for something shorter, and since I've had this book on my TBR pile for a while, this definitely fit the bill.
Nick Carraway is thinking back to the summer when he found himself the neighbour of the rich and well-known Jay Gatsby. A man who throws lavish parties in his mansion all the time. A man who is surrounded by so many, but is desperately alone...
I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. Except that it's an American classic, I have multiple thrift-store copies, and never watched the movie because I find DiCaprio very annoying. ☺
But I really enjoyed it. A lot!
The shallowness of these characters was certainly as disturbing as their sharp words, and blatant cruelty. They only care about perception and want to be seen with the right people at the right places at the right time. The way these men treated women was utterly despicable. It's not a surprise because it seems like women of this era--in spite of their pursuit for independence--were treated like pretty dolls to be gawked at and eventually captured.
These men captured a pretty lady of their own, took her home and when they got bored found another to have on the side. Yet, still treated that one like crap too. 😒
Anyway, back to the book.
I loved Fitzgerald's writing style. He managed to make the most of mundane situations lyrical, and kept my attention glued to the page no matter how annoying the characters were. Or how seemingly boring whatever they happened to be doing at the time was. He certainly had a way with words and provided an expert and intimate commentary about 1920s society.
Wish I could say that the world has grown and become a better and more inclusive place, but we seem to be going round in circles. Different problems, same old attitudes. And of course, I mention this because there were some cringe-worthy word choices and racist attitudes that got on my nerves. That Tom character sure was a piece of shit. On so many levels.
My favourite thing about this story is that I didn't expect it to go from disconnected rich guy who throws parties to fill up his hollow soul, to rich guy is obsessively in love with a married woman and wants her bad, to a hideous accident that becomes a crime. Yikes!
OMG. I wasn't expecting that at all. It's twisted.😯
Actually, I wasn't expecting this book to end up being such a tragic and sad tale about love, loss, desire and shiny people with no substance. Or to be so deep that after I finished, the utter brilliance of everything that happened kept bouncing inside my head. Still is.
Poor, silly Gatsby. Poor disillusioned Carraway.
I'm SO glad I finally read this classic because all the copies I have definitely deserve a place on my Keeper Shelf.
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