ontheedgeofeverything

I’ve been claiming for ages now that I wish to read more books that are considered classics, and I am pleased to report that said wish is actually, and finally, coming to fruition. I sort of unintentionally started on this classics journey by reading The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. I thoroughly enjoyed it, so I decided to read another – next was The Catcher in the Rye, if I’m recalling the order of my reading correctly. I’m just about finished reading The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, so I figured it’s time to offer another Read or Rid series entry.

I did enjoy this book, but allow me to say that it is rather difficult to follow. In my own words, the story of The Great Gatsby is told by the narrator, Nick, who finds himself in the midst of a new and exciting crowd of people in the U.S. during the jazz era. Nick himself doesn’t possess a tremendous amount of money, but he is living in a house that neighbours one of the most lavish homes in his neighbourhood in West Egg, and that mansion belongs to Mr. Gatsby. Mr. Gatsby is known for hosting lavish parties for wealthy and famous individuals, and upon meeting his neighbour, he finds himself quite drawn to Mr. Gatsby and his mysterious background.

The story mainly follows Nick, Mr. Gatsby, a woman named Jordan, and a married couple, Daisy and Tom. The four of them soon become entangled in a rather complicated and messy situation which ends in tragedy, but that tragedy is what allows Nick to truly comprehend the sort of man Mr. Gatsby was at his core.

I consider The Great Gatsby to be a read as opposed to a rid, and the writing is excellent. The story is odd, but certainly worth reading.

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