Reviews

The Great Gatsby and Other Classic Works by F. Scott Fitzgerald

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bluestarfish's review against another edition

3.0

This novella is a hallucinatory fairy tale of young John Unger who accepts an invitation to spend the school summer holidays with his mysterious classmate. They head out to Montana and then things get super weird as he's actually found the wealthiest family in the whole world. The wealth is immense but comes with a dark underside and is soul-destroying (it even induces an attempt to bribe God as an equal). An odd little tale of lost illusions.

Translators: Lubomír Dorůžka a Josef Škvorecký. This is another one of those books to help Czech people learn English. One side of the spread is in English and the other. This version also comes with commentary on the English explaning words and phrases and providing the Czech translation. It was fascinating to see what got explained and how much of the weirdly specific and not common words were ignored. There was also an interesting mistake in the English with the wrong person's name in the text and this was corrected in the Czech version. Understandable, but interesting.

owenpeak's review against another edition

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3.0

I adore how much Fitzgerald is able to say through the unsaid. Charlie felt like such a realistic protagonist who really tapped into the universal experience of letting past mistakes define oneself. The depiction of Paris was clever too; showing how a place once filled with joy can become tainted.

ivalimaki's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

manoncremers's review against another edition

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4.0

Even though Fitzgerald is mostly known for the melancholy The Great Gatsby, Babylon Revisited is a short story that lies perfectly in that same melancholy atmosphere. I loved how the title alone prefigured what this would be about: a city of splendor and life, punished because it behaved badly. Paris - once an Americanized capital of modernism - very much is set in a 'morning after' , ghost town-like atmosphere that grips the story together. Put an American in this setting and suddenly the story becomes very vulnerable, because it will no longer be his to tell.

emhwatson's review against another edition

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informative mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.0

lucieloureads's review against another edition

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4.0

My Introduction to Fitzgerald while visiting England on holiday, borrowed from the Hagreen's bookshelf. Enjoyed reading short stories for once and eager to read more. Fitzgerald was a great place to start. My favourite was the Diamond at the Ritz, about the school boy who is invited to a castle of unimaginable wealth which had an unsettling truth hidden in its splendor.

My individual ratings are:
(3) The Glass Cut Bowl
(5) May Day
(5) The Diamond at the Ritz
(5) The Rich Boy
(5) The Lees of Happiness
(3) An Alcoholic Case
(4) Crazy Sunday