The past year has been pretty exciting for fans of F. Scott Fitzgerald, with the much-awaited release of Baz Luhrmann’s ‘The Great Gatsby’. The film gave a great feel for the excess of the decade Fitzgerald has become synonymous with, as well as showing some pretty amazing parties which the 20s has become known for. But earlier this year another release brought fans ‘Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald’ by Therese Anne Fowler, in which we see more about Fitzgerald’s own life. This book is great for both the die-hard followers of the author and those who were intrigued by the recent film version of his most famous book: the light and easy writing style making for a stress-free read whilst the story is based on reality.
The book is told entirely told from the point of view of Zelda, Fitzgerald’s wife, and through her eyes we see the changes in society that led to the famed Jazz Age, so named by Fitzgerald himself. We see the passionate love that the couple had for each other which in the beginning inspired him to write things such as This Side of Paradise – his first major publication – and then eventually created so many problems for the couple because of his jealousy and her feelings of betrayal. Her dreams of a ballet career were continually sidelined for the sake of Scott’s, and from time to time he even published Zelda’s short stories under his own name.
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For those of you who couldn’t bear to read anything less than complimentary about Fitzgerald this may not be the book for you – Fowler is definitely more inclined to sympathise with Zelda, who felt like she gave so much up for her beloved husband’s career and ended up suffering a breakdown. It is interesting though, to learn more about the relationship between F. Scott and his wife, since his successes and failures are so entwined with the highs and lows of their marriage – without which the great triumphs of his career would most likely not have happened.
The best way to sum up their life together is to take a quote from Zelda herself: “I don’t want to live – I want to love first, and live incidentally.” The unending love which these two people had for each other – even at the worst points in their marriage – is wonderfully laid out by Fowler and she really shows how such a cavalier outlook on life led to so many problems for the young, idealistic couple.
In all, Her Campus Exeter definitely think this book is a great read – especially for the times when we all just want to curl up with a nice, easy read and a cup of tea. If you’re a fan of this era, we absolutely recommend this to you. Therese Anne Fowler just makes these two such influential people come alive: it really is a tale of the Jazz Age.
Sources: goodreads.com
Picture Credits: tworoadsbooks.com, finartamerica.com, huffingtonpost.com