The Great Gatsby

This is one of those books that most people have to read in high school. For some reason I didn't have to. I read The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald after having it highly recommended by a friend. I must say that I enjoyed this quick read. It had enough plot and romance to keep me interested. And enough symbolism/literary elements to keep me intellectually stimulated. The characters in the story are very human and easy to relate to. I didn't really enjoy the end... You can't help but feel for the guy and especially for his father. I won't ruin it for people who plan on reading it. Here are a couple of my favorite lines from the book:

"A small, flat-nosed Jew raised his large head and regarded me with two fine growths of hair which luxuriated in either nostril. After a moment I discovered his tiny eyes in the half-darkness."
-- Tell me that description doesn't make you smile? I love it! I seriously put a post-it note on that page and went back and reread it several times... who knew that describing nose hair could be so enjoyable!

I also really found the last message of the book to be very thought provoking -- its the kind of thing Mrs. Dutelle would have loved us to analyze the heck out of during English class--
"Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter--tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther....And one fine morning-- So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaslessly into the past."

All in all, a good, quick read!