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    This Side of Paradise
    This Side of Paradise
    This Side of Paradise
    Audiobook9 hours

    This Side of Paradise

    Written by F. Scott Fitzgerald

    Narrated by Robertson Dean

    3.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    If the Roaring Twenties are remembered as the era of "flaming youth," it was F. Scott Fitzgerald who lit the fire. His semiautobiographical first novel, This Side of Paradise, became an instant bestseller and established an image of seemingly carefree, party-mad young men and women out to create a new morality for a new, post-war America. It traces the early life of Amory Blaine from the end of prep school through Princeton to the start of an uncertain career in New York City.

    Alternately self-confident and self-effacing, torn between ambition and idleness, the self-absorbed, immature Amory yearns to run with Princeton's rich, fast crowd and become one of the "gods" of the campus. Hopelessly romantic, he learns about love and sex from a series of beautiful young "flappers," women who leave him both exhilarated and devastated. Fitzgerald describes it all in intensely lyrical prose that fills the novel with a heartbreaking sense of longing, as Amory comes to understand that the sweet-scented springtime of his life is fragile and fleeting, disappearing into memory even as he reaches for it.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateAug 3, 2010
    ISBN9781400188079
    Author

    F. Scott Fitzgerald

    F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940) is regarded as one of the greatest American authors of the 20th century. His short stories and novels are set in the American ‘Jazz Age’ of the Roaring Twenties and include This Side of Paradise, The Beautiful and Damned, Tender Is the Night, The Great Gatsby, The Last Tycoon, and Tales of the Jazz Age.

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    Reviews for This Side of Paradise

    3.5/5

    52 ratings36 reviews

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    • 3/5
      I never liked The Great Gatsby or Fitzgerald's short stories. But after reading The Beautiful and Damned, I thought I'd maybe misjudged Fitzgerald. Then I read this. If you enjoy the Great Gatsby, you'll probably enjoy this. I did not though. It was just far too much ado about nothing.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      The writing is pretty good, but the story drags. There's no real plot, which I suppose not every book needs. But while I liked Amory Blaine, I also found him kind of boring. Fitzgerald had a tendency to write only what he knew, since all his books are kind of related to the same idea of disillusionment, and the the separation between the classes. I never finished it, but I got about halfway through and I thought it was okay.It was nothing compared to The Great Gatsby.
    • 4/5
      It is a joy to begin a book which has been around for some time and you finally begin to read it and marvel at the beauty of the authors gift. How many times has FSF been called the greatest writer of the 20th century? For me there is no argument. The absolute beauty of the english language undwr his pen is enough to bring tears to ones eyes. His descriptions, his euphemisms, his ability to make unsympathetic characters human is without equal. This is his first novel and a thinly veiled autobiography of his experiences as a young man. And as a young man he thinks as a young man. I wish he had written 40 books instead of 4. But maybe the beautiful prose was meant for only a few and perhaps would have been diluted if there were more.
    • 3/5
      This, Fitzgerald's first book written at the tender age of 23, while in my opinion clearly his worst, hints at the enormous talent underlying some of his later masterpieces. This Side of Paradise is self-consciously autobiographical and has an unfortunate tendency towards pretentiousness and self-absorption. The narrative is also less mature than his later works, and tends to wander. Nonetheless, it is worth a read for glimpses of the incomparable Fitzgerald style.
    • 4/5
      I was somewhat struck by the use of a play format for heavy dialogue, and the various long poems, interspersed with a two-book structure (and interlude) and a complex structure of interwoven characters and time-shifts. Well worth the read and I can only imagine the stir it would have caused in 1920. I can only wonder what the original drat of this novel would have been line and I remain bewildered by the life experience FSF had at such a very young age.
    • 5/5
      This begins slowly. You really have to work to get through the first half, but once you get through that it really pays off. There are many brilliant moments in this book.
    • 5/5
      The life of Amory Blaine, a romantic, dreamy boy, who pursues friends on his intellectual level, girls who will break his heart, and literary idols who inspire him.The only child of a dramatic mother and a father who leaves little impression, Amory was molded into a precocious boy who believes himself better than his classmates, which makes it hard for him at school until he proves himself to be a good athlete. This transition earns him the title of "eccentric", which deflects from the boy's truer nature, which is snobbery. Making friends, attending Princeton, falling in love, serving in WWI and having low-paying work cause Amory to develop a less idealistic view of himself.
    • 4/5
      This book pretty much defines my college experience.

      Except for the attending Princeton part.
      And the not-being-a-hot-dude part.
      And I didn't fight in WWI either.

      okay, so maybe Amory Blaine and I are nothing alike, but we share the same sense of malaise and we're both drifting purposelessly through life.

      behold: the power of literature!
    • 3/5
      Duidelijk een eerste werk, met nog veel onvolkomenheden, maar het laat je niet los. Compositorisch moeilijk, pluriform, niet alles is even goed. Gevallen engel-thema, doorprikt zekerheden. Eerder queeste dan Bildungsroman. Een beetje zoals bij Wilde een storende opeenstapeling van quotes.
    • 5/5
      Having stumbled across the most recent book in the Spellman series, I had to go back and start with the first in order to be properly introduced to our heroine, Isabel "Izzy" Spellman. The sadly imperfect middle child in a family of private investigators (except for older brother David, who has joined the "normals" as an attorney), Izzy struggles with her identity, her career choice, her boyfriend choices, and her family members. Should be a sob story, but it's not. This book is original, outrageous, and hilarious. As Izzy careens from one adventure to another, she is rarely at a loss for a witty quip, often to her own detriment. And yet, among all the humor and craziness, a picture of a loving and caring family emerges. And that's what makes this book a winner.
    • 3/5
      This was my first Fitzgerald. The author came up in conversation and, having realized I had never read anything by him, the next time I was at the library I went to the fiction section and this was the only Fitzgerald currently on the shelf (my branch is one of the smallest in the county; much of what I read I have transferred in from the other locations).

      I had heard of This Side of Paradise, but I have no idea whether it's a good introduction to the author. As I read, I felt like I needed someone smarter than me to tell me what was important about the book.

      I noticed the changes in writing style: at times the story was told in third person, at times it was a play, at times a poem, and there was a brief couple of pages that were first person.

      I've read other fiction that takes place when this book does (the nineteen-teens), but most of it was historical fiction, while Paradisewas actually realistic fiction when it was published: a coming of age story about a young man growing up as the world around him is experiencing growing pains.

      I liked it, and I felt the writing was good, but I was alternately bored and interested. I couldn't figure out why the main character's two years at war were almost completely ignored (but I wasn't disappointed by the fact, that's for sure).

      I think my next Fitzgerald will be The Great Gatsby, for no other reason that it's the most famous.
    • 3/5
      I am a big fan of The Great Gatsby, so I thought I would pick up this novel, Fitzgerald's first. Unfortunately, it was no where near as good. I liked it, but I didn't love it.Summary: This Side of Paradise is the story of Amory Blaine, an egotistical young man who lives in the elite upper class world of 1910s and 1920s America. The reader watches as Amory attends a private prep school, goes to Princeton, fights in WWI, and then drifts along as one of the "lost generation." He loves, he loses, and he believes himself to have grown from a "personality" into a "personage." I, however, am still not sure of the destinction between the two, nor do I believe that Amory changes all that much.Amory's voice reminded me a little of Holden in The Catcher in the Rye, a book that I do not really enjoy. Both boys are lazy, sarcastic, self-important characters who complain a lot but do nothing. The up side of This Side of Paradise is Fitzgerald's prose, which is lovely, and the setting of the 1920s, a time period that I find infinitely interesting. Sprinkled throughout the book is Amory's poetry, which I guess shows his growth as an artist and a person, but I found it distracting. While this book doesn't live up to The Great Gatsby, it is interesting to see how Fitzgerald grew as an author, and since This Side of Paradise is semi-autobiographical, the reader gains a lot of insight into Fitzgerald's life. All-in-all, I am glad I read it, but this was definitely not one of my favourite reads for the year. Recommended for Classics-lovers or Fitzgerald aficiandos, but that's about it.
    • 2/5
      I really like Fitzgerald, and I think this book has some redeeming qualities, but the wandering story of Amory Blaine just didn't make me care, and that's why I didn't care for this novel.
    • 2/5
      This Side of Paradiseby F. Scott FitzgeraldIntroduction and Notes by Sharon G. CarsonThis Side of Paradise originally published in 1920 by ScribnerBarnes & Noble Classics trade paperback edition published in 2005 (by Barnes & Noble)ClassicsWHO: Amory Blaine,…WHAT: recounts his life as he comes of age, goes to boarding school, college, war, and falls in love a couple of times.WHERE: Blaine hails from the Mid-West, goes to Princeton and makes occasional forays into New York City to participate in social life.WHEN: The narrative covers roughly ten years, from 1908-1918, with very little time spent on Blaine’s military service in 1917.WHY: Blaine seeks to define himself philosophically…HOW: by taking into consideration his experiences, what he has been taught formally and through the mentorship of a priest.+ This Side of Paradise is a unique diary in form that functions as a thinly disguised autobiography of F. Scott Fitzgerald himself.- Without an academically informed approach, This Side of Paradise comes across as a self-indulgent account of a spoiled brat. With bad poetry.OTHER: I purchased paperback copy of This Side of Paradise (by F. Scott Fitzgerald; Introduction and Notes by Sharon G. Carson ) from Barnes and Noble (the retail store in Medford, OR.) I did not read theIntroduction and Notes by Sharon G. Carson. I learned to never do that when reading the Classics (unless the Classic is a re-read) as the academics who write these things often include spoilers. I receive no monies, goods or services in exchange for reviewing the product and/or mentioning any of the persons or companies that are or may be implied in this post.
    • 4/5
      Good book. I really liked it when I read it, but as I reflect now (a couple summers later), I think that Fitzgerald gets rather tiring. It's 'On the Road' that has done this to me, particularly a quote on the back mentioning that it was closer to Whitman's American Dream than Fitzgerald's. Fitzgerald is a confused boy living in a make-believe world, whereas Whitman and Kerouac celebrate Life. I prefer that. Today.
    • 4/5
      F. Scott Fitzgerald is most famous for his stories about the 'flappers' and their flippant lifestyle during the Roaring Twenties. As the times were, those stories are light and flimsy. They made Fitzgerald famous and rich as he captured the spirit of the age like no other author. However, I personally prefer his earlier and later works, when he produced some meatier novels. «This Side of Paradise» is one of his first novels. Apparently, readers are divided on this novel: some people love it, while others hate it. The novel has some experimental characteristics, such as the use of stage play dialogues.While I agree that the novel is at times a strain to read, other passages are adoring. Particularly, in the latter part of the novel one has the feeling that Fitzgerald is drawing a dividing line between the emerging literary scene and the Georgian authors. This development parallels the decline of the old world and the rise of America as the latest world of wealth. The first part of the novel is still rather appealing as a coming of age story, echoing the rebellious nature of Evelyn Waugh. Definitely an interesting book, but only if you are willing to mentally invest in it and see it's merit.
    • 3/5
      Expected more of Fitzgerald even though it was his first novel. A strange tale of a self-absorbed kid.
    • 2/5
      One of the mysteries of my life is why do I have to keep on reading to the bitter end books that are incredibly boring? I felt like giving this one up many times but kept right on to the very end. It is a mishmash of novel, notes, dialogue, play, poetry all revolving around the early life and loves of Amory Blaine, an apparently extremely good-looking man and apparently an intellectual but he failed to arouse the slightest interest. I liked the short stories of Flappers and Philosophers much better. Despite the promises of the introduction there is nothing racier than a kiss in the dark, and I was really annoyed by the many mistakes (such as Cecilia on one page and Cecelia on another) - is FSF so sacred that they should not be corrected in a new edition? Overall impression: written by a student who thinks undergraduate life is riveting, and wanting to show off all his literary knowledge.
    • 3/5
      I read this while on a trip to Washington and made no note on what I thought of the reading. My memory is that it was OK.
    • 3/5
      This book, compared to "The Great Gastby", wasn't nearly as good. I absolutely loved "The Great Gastby", but this book was more difficult for me to get into. I still enjoyed it, don't get me wrong, but it just didn't have the same spark that interested me.This book is a wonderful example of a rich man being shaded in the depths of his dreams. Armory, the main character, comes from a weathly family. He doesn't really think of what is going to happen now, it is always what will benefit him from the future, well, that is what I get from him, anyway. He goes with whatever will get him the most popularity throughout the book and ends up kind of just broken with everything at the end. There are several things that do relate to the time period, the first one that pops out is going to the movies then, prohibition and World War One. Overall, this was a really good book that I enjoyed, but it isn't my favorite F. Scott Fitzgerald book.
    • 4/5
      The circumstances of the novel have blurred over the years. It is certain that I finished the book at a White Castle, perhaps avoiding aspects of my life which had veered problematic. I recall highballs, many of them. The drinks were in the novel, of course. My own problems involved living in the wrong place and that finding the reciprocity of a relationship was corroding my self-esteem. There is an echo of that within the pages. That was a funny time. Does my smile appear forced?
    • 1/5
      I didn't enjoy reading this book in the least. In fact, I stopped reading the book because it was so dull and poorly written. I didn't realize this was either Fitzgerald's first book or one of his first books. Either way, it was not an enjoyable read and I found myself, forcing myself to get to the next page. Finally, I decided to abandon the book. This is a first for me.
    • 4/5
      An exquisitely written book, as a first book, Mr. Fitzgerald has his prose at a high level. Slightly autobiographical, it offers interesting insight into the author, and bears comparison with The Great Gatsby, for the same themes. The original poetry in the book is quite good too.
    • 1/5
      eBook

      You know something's wrong when the climax of your book involves your main character talking to a completely new character about communism. The real problem, however, is that Fitzgerald's book focuses on a main character who is not only insufferable, but boring as well. The side characters exist merely to give him something to do and the plot meanders pointlessly.

      I've read somewhere that This Side of Paradise is somewhat autobiographical, and while that might explain some of it, it fails to excuse any of it. This was a pointless exercise in tedium.
    • 4/5
      Ahhhh Mr. Fitzgerald. How you woo me with your lyrical prose and bore me with your philosophical shpeel.There were times during This Side of Paradise where I was overcome by what I was reading because it was just that amazing. And then there were times where I glazed over the philosophy with dry eyes and an annoying buzz in my ears. But looking beyond those parts, I have to acknowledge Paradise as Fitz’s first novel, and therefore the good parts were made that much better since he had nothing Gatsby-like to live up to. The bits of genius were effortless and beautiful because they were the first of their kind, pure and innocent. Paradise seems like it was easy for Fitz. Fun. I feel like I can tell this is his first novel because it wouldn’t be until later that the pressure of being a “good writer” would hit him. For that reason, I enjoyed this novel tremendously.This Side of Paradise revolves around Amory Blaine. There are many words to describe Amory: self-involved, self-indulgent, self-conscious. Overly dramatic, lost, found, curious, lonely, broken, bruised. Affected. Amory is a character. He’s full of life but completely lost. He’s a dreamer and an idealist and a realist all at the same time; he is one big hypocritical oxymoron, and he’s completely overwhelmingly tragic.We begin Amory’s life from whence all his issues started: Beatrice. Beatrice is dear old mother with her delicacy and indulgences, and her personality makes Amory into the person he is because of her eccentricities and failures. We follow Amory through school and his younger years (where he’s disliked by his classmates because they don’t get him), through his college years (where he’s liked by classmates because they don’t get him), vaguely through World War I, and always through his women, until we meet Rosalind – the beginning, end, and in-between of everything Amory wanted and could never have.Amory is always looking for himself, and never finding the person he wants. He loses himself in whatever he likes at the time, whether it be school, an idea, a place, or a person. He’s never happy and never content for long. He wants to be remembered, but never sticks to anything long enough to be cause for remembrance. He’s lost, and I feel sad for him. He never quite finds what he’s looking for.The best description of Amory can be found on the twelfth page of the book:“It was always the becoming he dreamed of, never the being.”
    • 3/5
      A decent novel. You can see the effort to become the great novelist he would become, but it seems experimental and forced at times. Additionally, Fitzgerald's worldview at twenty-three seemed to be lacking in maturity, but it is not a bad coming of age story. I would liken it to Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Maugham's Of Human Bondage except that they were better written than This Side of Paradise. Still, I am glad I read it, and I will remember it.
    • 3/5
      Duidelijk een eerste werk, met nog veel onvolkomenheden, maar het laat je niet los. Compositorisch moeilijk, pluriform, niet alles is even goed. Gevallen engel-thema, doorprikt zekerheden. Eerder queeste dan Bildungsroman. Een beetje zoals bij Wilde een storende opeenstapeling van quotes.
    • 4/5
      Amory Blaine is one of the more frustrating characters I've ever come to like. He is certainly self-interested to a degree that most would consider unhealthy. His self-interested escapades see him try everything from athletics and poetry to failing on purpose, going to war, and arguing for socialism to name a few. His philosophy is that he is beautiful and superior to more or less everyone he meets, save Burne Holliday. His mother dies young (an alcoholic), he is mentored by a priest who becomes his only 'father figure'. I see that the general consensus on the thing is that this novel is in some shape or form inferior to Fitzgerald's other novels. Well I'm no critic and I've not been through all F. Scott Fitzgerald's books. Some may dislike Amory and his self-righteous monologues, but in a world in which everyone is self-interested, well you'd be crazy to be any other way.The high moments of this novel are definitely those involving women. Amory's drunken escapade falls far short of Fitzgerald's own escapades and is most definitely toned down if this novel is to be at all autobiographical. He loses many lovers but Rosalind being the key love figure. His love for Eleanor being second best, not for Amory but for the quality of the story being told.The end is the best portion of the novel. However that may be just because I, unlike Amory, am sentimental and not romantic. The difference being something between hoping that it never ends and praying to God that it does.All in all, not a bad or difficult read.
    • 3/5
      This is the story of Amory Blaine and takes place in the early 1900's, just before and after WWI. Amory was born to a family of wealth and lived a rather leisurely life.
    • 5/5
      Finally, a Fitzgerald book that is interesting and does not follow the mold. Normally, I think F. Scott Fitzgerald is a most overrated writers. The more I have read of his works, the less I like him. Sure, he knows how to turn a phrase but he lacks what is essential to all truly good writers - how to make characters who appeal to the common man. This seems to me to be his major problem and will ultimately lead to his downfall from the pedestal upon which his friends in the New York publishing world had placed him. Who cares about the spoiled wealthy and their angst over empty lives? Every one of his books are similar in this respect. However, this particular one was his first and is the freshest. It shows the promise he had failed to fulfill.