This Side of Paradise was the first novel by F Scott Fitzgerald, published in 1920. The book shared some similarities with his own life at this time. On the surface it feels like a small, quiet little book where not much happens, but it does have deeper meaning and a close look at society at the time, if you care to reflect on it after reading.
The main character is Amory Blaine. Blaine’s father is wealthy but nonexistant, and dies early in Amory’s life. His mother is a bit mad, and treats Amory more as a friend than son, even having him call her by her name rather than “mother.” This leads Blaine to constantly seek approval from others throughout his life, especially women. The main crux of the story is Blaine goes to college at Princeton, falls in love a couple times, and ends up penniless after his mother’s death, due to her poor investments and donations to the church (she was once in love with another man before Amory’s father, who decided to become a clergyman instead).
Amory cares very much for his appearance to others. He cares more that others think he is intelligent, whether he is or isn’t. But at the same time, his bravado is just facade, he actually has a rather low self esteem. He loves poetry but considers himself a poor poet. He values intelligence but is a poor student, not because he isn’t smart, but because he spends too much time going to parties or trying to impress others. Early in his college career he is easily swayed by others’ ideas, but he does develop his own outlook on life by the end of the tale.
He falls in love a couple times in the book. First to Isabelle, though the two end up not liking each other much once they get to know each other. By the time he meets Rosalind, his finances are a mess and he is now the spurned suitor. They love each other very much, but she knows she will only be happy living in high society, which Amory cannot provide. He almost falls again for Clara, but realizes she is near insane, much like his mother was, and so is immediately turned off. At the end of the book, Amory is penniless and alone, to the point that he starts forwarding socialism, admitting he is more comfortable taking a handout than working “beneath his station” for pay.
The novel is very much semi-biographical. Fitzgerald’s love would not marry him because she thought he would not be successful enough to satisfy her lifestyle. In the book Amory nevers gets Rosalind, but when This Side of Paradise looked like it would be a hit, Zelda did marry Fitzgerald. Of course, she was later diagnosed as a schizophrenic and died in a sanitarium, so there’s that…
This book isn’t as well defined as Fitzgerald’s later works, but it does have a nice raw feel and is easy to read. It is fun to paint the similarities between the novel and his early life too. I’m not sure I would consider it one of the “100 best” but it an interesting look at the evolution of Fitzgerald as an author.
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