The Great Gatsby

Summary

Arguably the greatest American novel of the 20th century, Fitzgerald’s simple story of lost love has captivated readers, filmmakers and fellow writers for generations.

Narrator Nick Carraway tells the story of his neighbour Jay Gatsby, whose parties at his Long Island mansion are as lavish as his past is mysterious. Yet Gatsby cares only for one of his guests: his lost love Daisy Buchanan, now married and living across the bay. In Fitzgerald’s hands, this deceptively simple story becomes a perfect work of art, told in hauntingly beautiful prose.

On its first publication in 1925, The Great Gatsby was largely dismissed as a light satire on Jazz Age follies. Today, it is acknowledged as a masterpiece: a love story, an exploration of the American dream, and arguably the greatest American novel of the 20th century.