Rating: 
Summary: A must read!
Review: Gatsby in a lot of ways is typical of most of us today, who live modern, crowded lives. As you enter Gatsby's world of parties and beautiful people, you are left with the almost overwhelming thought that Gatsby is always in a crowd and yet he is always alone!A must read, one of the most beautifully targic stories of all time! Targic without being sad.
Rating: 
Summary: Widely considered best work of fiction ever
Review: The Great Gatsby is widely considered the greatest piece of fiction ever written. Its almost insulting that a story written as a representation of the 1920's lifestyle (and the best representation ever) that explores the themes of greed at the time is downgraded because the plot isn't Fight Club.
Rating:
Summary: The Great Gatsby
Review: The Great Gatsby is a great Modern American Literature novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It takes place in the early 1900's. The main characters are Jay Gatsby, a very rich and handsome man, Daisy and Tom Buchanan, and Daisy's cousin Nick Carraway. This book is written for entertainment. It captures all the romance and glitter of the Jazz Age in its portrayal of a young man and his tragic search for love and success. The theme of this novel is that Gatsby wants to get Daisy back as his true love. The problem is that Daisy is already married. Gatsby believes that once Daisy sees him again, she will fall back into love with him. One day, Gatsby wants Nick to invite Daisy over to his house for tea. Nick said that he would do it, so he called Daisy and asked her to come over. When she got there, she started talking to Nick, then Gatsby appeared. Daisy hadn't seen him for a long time. They just starred into each others eyes. Finally, they started talking. This scene is a major event in the story because this is where Daisy starts to fall in love with Gatsby again. The use of irony in this novel is repeated throughout the story. For example, if Gatsby is so much in love with Daisy, then why would he have even thought about leaving her in the first place. Then, if Daisy was so in love with Gatsby, why did she marry Tom and not wait for Gatsby to return to her. A quote that is repeated in this novel is "good morning, old sport." This quote is said to Nick by Gatsby. Gatsby never calls Nick by his real name. He always refers to him as "old sport." A person that likes love stories would like this novel. It keeps you on the edge of your seat wanting to read more to find out what might happen to Gatsby and Daisy's love for each other.
Rating:
Summary: Godd, But did not Stand Out as Something Great
Review: Believe it or not, I just recently finished reading this book for the first time. Somehow, I never read "The Great Gatsby" in high school or college (and I have read many classic works). But, recently everyone was talking about this work and it's 75th anniversary in the year 2000, so I decided to read it. I thought the book was very good, but just did not stand out in my mind as great literature, compared to some literature I have read that is also considered "classic." The storyline for "The Great Gatsby" is set in the mid-twenties. The main character is a fellow by the name of Nick who moves into a house in what is called "West Egg Village" next to a mysterious and "rich" fellow by the name of Gatsby. Gatsby has these parties where people from all over come to socialize while the whole time Gatsby stays aloof, for the most part, from the guests who arrive at his house. Through a series of events, Nick befriends Gatsby, and as the story unfolds, and their friendship grows, Gatsby slowly allows Nick to see the "real" Gatsby (I won't ruin it for those who have not read the story). Nick discovers that Gatsby has a long time infatuation with a girl who Nick (and Gatsby) knows. Gatsby convinces Nick to invite this girl over to Nick's house, and when she shows Gatsby will nonchalantly show up and work his magic. The plot thickens when the girl and Gatsby meet (again), and certain events unfold that lead to several major tragedies (i.e. deaths). One of the things I enjoyed was Fitzgerald's ability to take his reader into the mind of his major character (Nick). Also, ironically, this novel worked as a type of prophetic statement (obviously unintentionally) to the end or "death" of the roaring twenties (the Jazz age); it dies a quick death, and thus "the party" is over. While I did enjoy the story, and I did enjoy Fitzgerald's writing style (I would read his other works), I did not think this story stood out as a great classic. However, the 75th anniversary edition that I read had a very nice introduction as well as a section that described the history of the text (it's revisions, etc), it also contained a publisher's afterword, and explanatory notes. All of these additions were very helpful for me, a first time reader. I would recommend this book simply because it is a good story that keeps your attention from cover to cover.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: The Great Gatsby is a novel that breeds contrasting opinions from readers throughout. That is definitely a sign of a great, classic piece ofliterature. If a novel was written and full of adulation and honour, it would not be a good book, because human thinking seeks entertainment and the literal sense of words, therefore a book that is both loved and hated at the same time proves to be one which offends and intrigues audineces in such a vast, drastic way, that its ablty to do this makes itself a masterpiece. The myriad themes in this novel are what sets it apart from all others. The rise and fall of the American Dream is portrayed in which we can all see the rise and fall of success in our lives and forces us to think whether we should proceed with our lives, living in superficiality and materialism as Daisy and Tom did. The passion and obsessive love that Gatsby hold for Daisy is unrecognizable today, and it brings a sort of mystery and wonderment of what it could be should it be refelcted at present. The Great Gatsby is based upon equality, socail discrimination and our human ideals. It revolves around what we perceive is important, happiness or materialism and while we go about careless of others and absorbed by ourselves, what are we trying to prove? God is in fact watching us and as we try to achieve success and beconme happy using guidelines other than those of reaching the genuine American Dream, we are doomed to failure. This book is touching.... read it... do not expect excitement... look for depth, meaning, symbolism and those lessons that could change your perspective of the world.
Rating:
Summary: This Century's Soap Opera:The Great Gatsby
Review: Jay Gatsby's life plays out like a autobiography of F. Scott Fitzgerald himself because it is. The Great Gatsby is more authentic and wonderful because the author himself lived in the twenties. He wrote about what he knew and his finished product turned out to be a great contribution to American canon. The two settings contrast the other as the story moves along the sparkling East and West Eggs to a old run-down gas station. The setting is important as they show the power money and greed hold over people. Jay Gatsby is a "new money" millionaire that is in love and slightly obsessed with Daisy who rejected him years before because of his shabby upbringing. Gatsby, determined to be Daisy's "gold-hatted lover", makes himself a fortune that his mysterious past helps him with. Gatsby throws elaborate parties(a reflection of the twenties) hoping that his beloved Daisy will come running back into his arms. The only problem is Daisy is married to the rich and jealous Tom Buchanan. The narrator Nick Carraway, Daisy's distant cousin, moves in next door to Gatsby and the inevitable happens: character's lives start to mingle and intertwine.There is no happy message and hardly anyone gets what they want at the end but I was entertained and moved by this book. It is a realistic story that has all the elements it takes to enjoy a book: jealousy, suspense, love and humor. And will you look at that: all before the days of major motion pictures. See, screenwriters don't make all this stuff up.
Rating:
Summary: The Great Gatsby
Review: Jay Gatsby's life plays out like out like a biography on F. Scott Fitzgerald because it is. The Great Gatsby is a better book because the author experienced everything that went on during the twenties. In fact, if Fitzgerald had wrote this book today it would be a plot line on Days of Our Lives. I didn't know this book would be so entertaining. Jay Gatsby is a millionaire with a wonderfully mysterious past. He is madly in love with his old girlfriend Daisy who rejected him because of his poor beginnings. Now, Gatsby is back with an extravagent life and an obsession with Daisy. Only problem is, she's married to the rich and jealous Tom Buchanan. Gatsby throws crazy parties(a reflection of the decade)hoping that one day Daisy might stumble back into his arms. Nick Caraway, Daisy's distant cousin, moves into next door to Gatsby and soon the inevitable happens:characters start getting tangled up in each other's lives. This book was satisfying in all aspects:love, scandal, suspense and humor. And will you look at that: all before major motion pictures. Screenwriters didn't make this stuff up.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Book I've Read For My English Class
Review: The Great Gatsby wasn't just great, it was fantastic, excellent, amazing, and most importantly fun to read. Fitzgerald's style of writing ingrigued me from the beginning. His exquisite use of figurative language had me fully engaged. I never wanted to put the book down. His characters had me enthralled throughout the whole novel, and I felt like I was watching the events happen, just as Nick was. When I first was told I was going to read the Great Gatsby I wasn't that excited. Although the 1920s were a fascinating time in our history, it didn't seem the book would be that great. Once I read the first page, I was proven wrong. There were many themes that taught me. Instead of running away from the question "What are the themes of this novel?" (usually asked by English teachers), I wanted to know the answer and understand the novel more. The symbolization in the novel was also great. The green light across the bay represents the far away love Gatsby has for Daisy. The clock falling represents the way that love has been lost and will never be retrieved; that too much time has passed. All of the symbolization, the themes, and the distinct description throughout the novel make it a wonderful read. I enjoyed reading this novel so much. It was one of the best written novels I've ever read. I loved it!
Rating: 
Summary: The Great Gatsby
Review: I thought The Great Gatsby was an ok book. I didn't like how the whole time people were just sleeping around and not acomplishing anything. I also didn't like how Gatsby only held such partys because he was trying to impress someone. I think people need to be themselves and not revolve their life around other peoples lifes. I didn't like at the end how WIlson thought it was Gatsby who was having an affair with his wife and he killed him. The whole book was a mess and very boring. When you thought it would get exciting it didn't.
Rating:
Summary: The Great Gatsby is a classic in its own right!
Review: I can still remember how hesitant I was to read this book. I thought that it, i.e., The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, et al, would be drab and boring. However, as it turned out, I would have to say that this book, i.e., The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, et al must be one of the best books that I have ever read. The story is set in the eastern U.S. and trails the journey of a young man named Nick. The book follows Nick from his home in the West to his new life in West Egg, New York (which was at the time the place to be). Nick becomes involved in the social scene of West Egg; which is mainly centered on the weekly extravagant parties thrown by the incredibly wealthy and strangely mysterious man named Jay Gatsby. I would unquestionably recommend this book and I do consider it, i.e., The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, et al to be an American classic that will be read from now to eternity.
|
