One of the most important works in American literature and, to many, great American novel. I want to write something. Scott Fitzgerald told his editor, Maxwell Perkins, something extraordinary and beautiful and simple and intricately patterned. A century later, Fitzgerald little book of big ideas retains its freshness and excitement. The quintessential portrait of Jazz Age America, it reflects the postwar exuberance as well as the corruption and immorality lurking behind the glamour of wild parties, dancing, and illegal drinking. Narrator Nick Carraway a transplant from the Midwest like Fitzgerald himself, observes the wasteful lives of his well-to-do neighbors in this tale of money, love, and the pursuit of the American dream. The unforgettable cast is headed by Jay Gatsby, a self-made man whose determination to realize his fantasies embodies both the glories of imagination and the grimness of reality. Above all, The Great Gatsby is animated by the magic of Fitzgerald incandescent prose and its timeless exploration of the importance of honesty, the temptations of wealth, and the struggle to escape the past.