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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
Some better than others, but all in all good short stories!
One of my ultimate favorite authors. Completely captivating from start to finish.
Full of delightful wit and sparkling imagination and sharp satire. Fitzgerald was a pleasure, as he always is.
I just adore Fitzgerald's writing. My favorite stories were "May Day," "The Diamond as Big as the Ritz," "O Russet Witch," and "The Lees of Happiness."
I read most of this back in September 2017; picked it up and finished the last two stories in September 2019.
The first two stories, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and "Head and Shoulders," are excellent. The remaining four I found to be dull and difficult to get through.
The first two stories, "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" and "Head and Shoulders," are excellent. The remaining four I found to be dull and difficult to get through.
I loved this collection of eleven short stories by local lad F. Scott Fitzgerald (well, he spent part of his childhood in St. Paul and attended high school at St. Paul Academy (where I played Sunday basketball for close to 30 years -so we roamed the same hallways and gymnasiums!)). My only complaint is that the 2006 Walking Lion Press edition I own contained many spelling errors. I was really surprised by this. How did these errors get past proofreading?! I've forgiven Walking Lion Press, though, as I admire the book cover which features a mesmerizing painting of Edith Bradin from May Day.
Not only are the stories excellent, so is the table of contents which includes a paragraph or two about the origins of each story. Great stuff. Fitzgerald divides the collection in to three parts: "My Last Flappers", "Fantasies", and "Unclassified Masterpieces". I'm not big on fantasy but the stories were all so well written and well told that there was no drop off in interest for me. I rarely give short story collections five stars but am going to for Tales of the Jazz Age as I really enjoyed all the stories and some were just fantastic.
My favorites of the bunch were:
May Day: an episodic tale set on May Day some time after WWI. Sad and unpleasant, this was hard to forget. Would make a great movie. One of the best short stories I've read in a long time.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: I think everyone knows of this odd fantasy story - it was made in to a film in 2008 directed by David Fincher and starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. I really liked the film as well.
The Camel's Back: a hilarious lost love story centered around a costume party and a two-person camel costume.
Ratings for each story:
The Jelly-Bean *****
The Camel's Back *****
May Day *****
Porcelain and Pink ****
The Diamond as Big as the Ritz ***
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button *****
Tarquin of Cheapside ****
"O Russet Witch! ****
The Lees of Happiness *****
Icky ****
Jemina, the Mountain Girl ****
Not only are the stories excellent, so is the table of contents which includes a paragraph or two about the origins of each story. Great stuff. Fitzgerald divides the collection in to three parts: "My Last Flappers", "Fantasies", and "Unclassified Masterpieces". I'm not big on fantasy but the stories were all so well written and well told that there was no drop off in interest for me. I rarely give short story collections five stars but am going to for Tales of the Jazz Age as I really enjoyed all the stories and some were just fantastic.
My favorites of the bunch were:
May Day: an episodic tale set on May Day some time after WWI. Sad and unpleasant, this was hard to forget. Would make a great movie. One of the best short stories I've read in a long time.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: I think everyone knows of this odd fantasy story - it was made in to a film in 2008 directed by David Fincher and starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. I really liked the film as well.
The Camel's Back: a hilarious lost love story centered around a costume party and a two-person camel costume.
Ratings for each story:
The Jelly-Bean *****
The Camel's Back *****
May Day *****
Porcelain and Pink ****
The Diamond as Big as the Ritz ***
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button *****
Tarquin of Cheapside ****
"O Russet Witch! ****
The Lees of Happiness *****
Icky ****
Jemina, the Mountain Girl ****
Troppo lento e ogni racconto aveva tradimenti e molti avevano violenza.
funny
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated