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fluorescentbookworm's review against another edition
5.0
Since I've just finished reading it and words cannot fully express my feelings right now, all I can say is that if possible, I would've given this book not 5, but 10 stars.
hafsa's review against another edition
Going to put this on hold for now, having a hard time getting through it
jen286's review against another edition
1.0
This review was originally posted to Jen in Bookland
1.5 stars
The Great Gatsby - I don't get it. That is basically my review. I don't get why this is such a classic, why people seem to love it so much, really I just don't get it. It is just a bunch of rich people in the 20's having parties and their nonsensical conversations. Throw in the fact that everyone cheats on each other and you have The Great Gatsby. There is very little actual plot and it is just this random hodge podge of conversations. I found it very hard to pay attention to what I was reading. I kept having to go back and re-read as I found I just read a few pages and could not tell you what happened. Then I would re-read it and think oh, well nothing really happened so no worries. Then I also would also go back and re-read parts as I was always feeling like I was missing something. It was just a strange read for me. Little character development, little plot development, really little plot and yet it is a classic. I haven't seen the movie yet, but I do think it will be way better than the book. I mean it has to have a more developed storyline than the book does right? We shall see.
The book starts off with our narrator Nick moving in next door to Gatsby. He also has a married cousin, Daisy, who lives nearby. The first 3/4 of the book I feel like nothing really happened. I kept thinking why am I reading this? Why do people love this book so much? Then we get to the last bit and a few things happened, but I didn't really care. I didn't care about any of the characters as they were all so over the top ridiculous rich people that it was just hard to connect with. That and you didn't really get to know them at all so they are just random people.
Before I read this I remember hearing it is this great love story. That to me is the most head scratching thing of all. I don't see how this is a love story. The characters were just cheating on each other which even if they would have been developed more so I connected with them, even if there would have been more of a story here, that wouldn't be a great love story for me. A very strange read and I just don't understand what so many people see in this book that makes it such a classic. Oh well, I guess I don't have to get it. It is just not for me.
1.5 stars
The Great Gatsby - I don't get it. That is basically my review. I don't get why this is such a classic, why people seem to love it so much, really I just don't get it. It is just a bunch of rich people in the 20's having parties and their nonsensical conversations. Throw in the fact that everyone cheats on each other and you have The Great Gatsby. There is very little actual plot and it is just this random hodge podge of conversations. I found it very hard to pay attention to what I was reading. I kept having to go back and re-read as I found I just read a few pages and could not tell you what happened. Then I would re-read it and think oh, well nothing really happened so no worries. Then I also would also go back and re-read parts as I was always feeling like I was missing something. It was just a strange read for me. Little character development, little plot development, really little plot and yet it is a classic. I haven't seen the movie yet, but I do think it will be way better than the book. I mean it has to have a more developed storyline than the book does right? We shall see.
The book starts off with our narrator Nick moving in next door to Gatsby. He also has a married cousin, Daisy, who lives nearby. The first 3/4 of the book I feel like nothing really happened. I kept thinking why am I reading this? Why do people love this book so much? Then we get to the last bit and a few things happened, but I didn't really care. I didn't care about any of the characters as they were all so over the top ridiculous rich people that it was just hard to connect with. That and you didn't really get to know them at all so they are just random people.
Before I read this I remember hearing it is this great love story. That to me is the most head scratching thing of all. I don't see how this is a love story. The characters were just cheating on each other which even if they would have been developed more so I connected with them, even if there would have been more of a story here, that wouldn't be a great love story for me. A very strange read and I just don't understand what so many people see in this book that makes it such a classic. Oh well, I guess I don't have to get it. It is just not for me.
cafeaulivre's review against another edition
5.0
A reread that made me realize I had forgotten the literary genius of F. Scott Fitzgerald.
The Great Gatsby is a window to Fitzgerald's time and world, but also a mirror to society today.
It is a ride on a merry-go-round that keeps speeding up, and while you know it is going to end in disaster, you simply can't get off. The characters show the worst of mankind, but at the same time make you realize you know people just like them. They are, first and foremost, human.
I already loved The Great Gatsby and this time, I read into Fitzgerald's life first, and all the people in his life these characters are actually based on, something I highly recommend doing.
The Great Gatsby is a window to Fitzgerald's time and world, but also a mirror to society today.
It is a ride on a merry-go-round that keeps speeding up, and while you know it is going to end in disaster, you simply can't get off. The characters show the worst of mankind, but at the same time make you realize you know people just like them. They are, first and foremost, human.
I already loved The Great Gatsby and this time, I read into Fitzgerald's life first, and all the people in his life these characters are actually based on, something I highly recommend doing.
catrad's review against another edition
2.0
Really? Great classic of 20th century literature? I'm sorry, I just don't get it. The first half of this book was so horrifically dull that I could hardly be bothered to pick it up to read it. But I'm a stubborn old mule, and once I'd started it there was no other option but to finish it. Eventually. There were only three chapters where anything actually happened, and they were vaguely interesting, but overall I wish I hadn't bothered. Halfway through reading I got opinions from three friends who'd read it to ask if it got any better. I receive two flat 'no's, and a 'yes, I loved it, it's like a soap opera'. And perhaps therein lies the problem. I am not a soap opera girl and cannot abide the petty, selfish, self-centred vagaries of that type of character, which unfortunately filled this book from start to finish. I had no empathy for a single person in The Great Gatsby, and not even much interest. I rated it 2* solely because the story did seem to pick up a little two thirds of the way through and I was slightly interested in what was happening. Overall though? Don't bother unless you love empty-headed rich people and their issues.
meandmypaperback's review against another edition
3.0
Another classic re-read. And not what I remembered at all. In my head I thought I remembered this being more about prohibition. Obviously I did not pay attention in high school English…
and to see more...
http://champagneandbooks.blogspot.ca/2013/03/review-great-gatsby-by-f-scott.html
and to see more...
http://champagneandbooks.blogspot.ca/2013/03/review-great-gatsby-by-f-scott.html
rockerchick91's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0