This review is spoiler free.
“I hope she’ll be a fool — that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.”
Published: 2012, by Alma Books.
Pages: 210
Format: Paperback
Genre: Classics, Fiction, Historical, Historical Fiction, Literature, Romance
Contains: Anger, Violence, Death
‘The Great Gatsby’ follows Nick Carraway, a young bachelor who has just settled in the neighbouring cottage beside a lavish mansion. After being invited to an extravagant party at the said mansion, Nick meets the mysterious host, Jay Gatsby, a self-made man with a shadowy past. As the two strike up an unlikely friendship, details of Gatsby’s love for a married woman emerge, and events spiral into tragedy.
‘The Great Gatsby’ is often regarded as a literary classic, depicting the cautionary critique of the American dream. Personally, I’ve always thought of the novel as a masterpiece, it being my favourite book of all-time, and after having a few years away from it I thought it was about time I returned to it. And I’m so glad that I did.
Nick Carraway made for an incredible protagonist, the novel written as his version of events regarding the reunion of Daisy and Gatsby without interfering too much. It was obvious that the man cares deeply for Gatsby, aware of his lies but still standing by his side. Nick feels sympathetic towards Gatsby, believing him to be a lonely man, so he does all he can to ensure he’s got company beside him and people he can trust.
Gatsby is my favourite fictional character of all time, exploring the theme of loneliness brilliantly in the form of extravagant lies and deceptions. He’s surrounded by so many people at his parties, and yet none of them could point him out within a crowd. He’s living a lie, and yet you feel sorry for him.
Daisy, however, is a character we’re conflicted by from the start. She’s sweet, innocent, and adored, and yet she’s another victim to loneliness. Torn between lovers, we’re guided through the story by her to its epic conclusion where she shows her true colours. She’s a deeply sad character, and we can’t help but be torn of our feelings towards her.
The story itself is written concisely, told in only nine chapters, making it the perfect weekend read. Fitzgerald guides you through the story with lavish descriptions and dialogue, highlighting his talent for exposition and hitting you full-force with the twists and turns of the plot. Told from Nick’s perspective, he’s an unreliable narrator, but we trust his opinions from the get-go, immediately empathising with these characters and desperate to have our questions answered.
Overall, I deeply adore this novel. The descriptions awe me, the dialogue intrigues me, and the characters pull on my heart-strings. I’ll forever recommend this novel.
5/5
A Little Fool Reads 
It’s amazing seeing someone who loves something so much getting to talk all about why they love it. I personally know how high of a regard you hold this book and how much it’s shaped you, and this was wonderful to read. I’m 2/3rds of the way through and I’m looking more and more forward to finishing it because of how glowing and excited you were for it in your own review. 😊💜
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Thank you so much for reading it, your support means a lot to me. This novel has had a special place in my heart for many years now, and it’s only just come to my attention that I haven’t reviewed it before. It’s hard to critique when you love something so much, but I’m glad you feel as if I’ve done a good job. I hope you enjoy your read through of it too! I’m really excited to hear your thoughts 🥰💖
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Critiquing when you love something is a hard thing to do, and I think it comes from a real place of insightfulness and intelligence. It’s easy to get blinded or build up an impossible ideal image of something we like, but knowing what isn’t so good makes you a much more active person in debates and it makes it harder to take it personally accidentally if someone has a critiquing point. You already know about them, you can agree, you can disagree, you can talk it out with people and you can even say what might have made it work better. It’s much better than blindly accepting a piece of someone’s work. Also, this was the book you reached your Goodreads goal with for the year. Congratulations on a whole year of smashing books and being so entertaining and insightful. You’ve been awesome. 👍💜
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