The Great Gatsby: The Only Authorized Edition

There's nothing new under the sun - the plot is cliché but the way it was executed almost makes you forget that fact but nun the less, its a great time passer, as long as you don't have "Great" expectations, excuse the pun. If you are looking for something to enthrall you and have you flabbergasted over the serendipitous twists and turns with more of an original plot or story line, look elsewhere, but if you want to pass the time reading something equitable then this is definitely your favorite book.

BOTTOM-LINE: Over-rated as a classic . PLOT OR PREMISE: A man observes the comings and goings of a 1920s party host who is both his neighbor and a paramour of his cousin. . WHAT I LIKED: It is weird to go back and read this book some 35 years after high-school. I remember thinking it was this glamourous world of parties and high society, where people really did act differently from the common folk. As an adult, I see it for what it is -- a portrayal of a shallow summer, without substance or value, leading to an inevitable tragedy of people over-estimating their self-importance and narcissism. Beautifully written, harshly portrayed as Nick Carroway observes the desire by Jay Gatsby for a married Daisy Buchanan, the woman he loved but lost years before. All of the summer reads like life without consequences, an embracing of hedonism and simple pleasures, but without anyone asking if it is really what they want or just what they think they want. . WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: I find it intriguing that my young self saw it as a tragedy, but without particular indictment of the lifestyle of the secondary characters. They seemed more cliché or farce than real at the time, but now it just seems simply depressing across the board. I didn't care about any character anywhere in the book, not even Nick, who is mostly a blank slate. . DISCLOSURE: I received no compensation, not even a free copy, in exchange for this review.

I hated most of the books i read in high school until the next year then i would realize i actually enjoyed them, for instance Animal Farm, Fareneheit 451, edgar allen poe's work and shakespear, but The Great Gatsby i enjoyed from page 1 and still love this book, it can get a little tricky for some which i noticed in class, but ive always read a lot of books growing up way above my "reading level" so i had no difficulty but honestly it lives up to its hype in my opinion