The novel is narrated by Nick Carraway, a man that recently moved to 1920s New York, and is the neighbor of the rich and popular Jay Gatsby, who the novel focuses on. Nick’s cousin Daisy is married to Tom Buchanan, an old money gentleman, and lives across the bay from Nick and Gatsby. Before WWI, when Gatsby and Daisy were younger, they first met and supposedly fell in love. After returning from the war, Gatsby was determined to find Daisy again and marry her and give her everything she ever wanted, which he realizes may actually be possible when he meets Nick. The Great Gatsby is a story about the rivalry between new and old money generations and the tragedy of greed versus true love. The book also explores the double standards of marriage and gender in post great war America.
I don’t typically read classics like this, but one; I’ve been trying to expand my reading horizons and two; I’d heard good things about The Great Gatsby. When I first picked up the book I expected to be bored halfway through and regret my choice, but in fact the opposite happened and I ended up reading so quickly that I had to continually go back to figure out what I missed because I was so caught up in the story and invested in the storyline. While written in the older fashion of the 20s, the short nature of the novel created fast paced drama that I really enjoyed. I was pretty much shocked at the end of each chapter and the end of the book was so fitting and truthful and real that I couldn’t believe what had happened for a good couple of minutes afterwards.
If you want a new classic book to pick up or aren’t normally into classics but want to give them another chance, I highly recommend The Great Gatsby. It provides so much insight towards the societal issues of older - and even modern - America in a way that almost makes you want to live in the world and the parties of Gatsby. There is a lot of enjoyment to be had from this short novel.
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