Book Review: The Great Gatsby

I was introduced to The Great Gatsby in my 8th grade English class. During one quarter we had a choice of three books to read: the F. Scott Fitzgerald classic, Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha, or John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. For some inexplicable reason I chose Siddhartha, a choice I regret to this day. That book was so boring I could barely get through it. Not quite a horrible as Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, it nevertheless lies on the same level in my mind. I consider that book as my freshman hazing in college since I was required not only to read it but I also had to write numerous essays about it before classes even started as part of the freshmen honors seminar in which I was enrolled. Yay for the University Honors system. What a joke.

In any case, having realized my mistake too late I went back and read The Great Gatsby after the fact and liked it so much I read most of his other novels along with some short stories and the collection of letters he wrote his daughter (which is not surprisingly entitled Letters to His Daughter.) I suppose I should note that I did NOT go back and read Steinbeck’s contribution to the list. I think The Pearl put me off from Steinbeck forever just as The Old Man and the Sea made me very wary of Hemingway (yay for required reading!)

Man, I keep getting distracted! This is supposed to be a book review. So I re-read The Great Gatsby again this past week during my lunch hour. It’s very easy reading but I think it’s easier for me since I always picture a 1970’s Robert Redford as I read. (Yum.) Yes, I even own the movie. On video cassette. Granted the movie isn’t that great and I can’t stand Mia Farrow, but it’s still worth a watch every once in a while. It follows the book very closely to the point that Nick’s narrations are pretty much word for word at times. Anyway, this book is always touted as a glimpse into the sordid life of the rich 1920’s flappers crowd. Could be, but it’s still an entertaining way to pass a couple hours.