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The Great Gatsby  By  cover art

The Great Gatsby

By: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Narrated by: William Hope
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Publisher's summary

Elegant, enigmatic Jay Gatsby yearns for his old love, the beautiful Daisy. But she is married to the insensitive if hugely successful Tom Buchanan, who won’t let her go despite having a mistress himself. In their wealthy haven, these beguiling lives are brought together by the innocent and entranced narrator, Nick – until their decadent deceits spill into violence and tragedy. Part morality tale, part fairy tale, The Great Gatsby is the consummate novel of the Jazz Age. Its tenderness and poetry make it one of the great works of the 20th century.

Public Domain (P)2010 Naxos Audiobook

What listeners say about The Great Gatsby

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

The Very Good Gatsby

The Book
What can I say? It is one of the best known plots of modern times. It is regarded as a modern American classic, alongside "Grapes of Wrath", Huck Finn's Adventures and Scout's wondering at her father's integrity. But for me, it has always been missing something. I know it's about soulless people for whom, what it looks like is more important than what it is. So of course it is missing something. That's the point! But still, there's something I can't put my finger on that separates this from the true "Greats".
I just read Melinda's review (which I always read with interest). She gets it, but I don't. For me Fitzgerald has so successfully dismissed these glitzy cut-out figures, that I have no empathy for any of them, not even Dan. That leaves me this: awed by the language, but not so hot about the story. And, isn't it all about the story? Anyway, who am I to criticise the book. It can't have been too bad because I listened to two versions of it over a day!
Overall, I think my prejudice is not a good guide. I love the language, but I could easily never read this again. I wouldn't say the same for Wrath, Mockingbird or Finn, and certainly I will read Of Mice and Men again, hopefully many times.

The Performance
As mentioned, I listened to two versions of this tale. I started with this one, then saw the Jake Gyllenhaal one advertised. It wasn't that I wasn't enjoying William Hope's performance, because I listened to both from "cover to cover". However, I found it a bit over dramatic, although that sense of avarice has its place within this book. Also, I wanted to understand why this is an hour longer than the Gyllenhaal version. I never got to the bottom of that. I liked his (Hope's) characterisation (especially of Daisy and Gatsby) more than the other version, but I didn't like the "sing-song" aspect of some of the narrative. Still the performance was good and didn't detract from the book, and it's all about the book.

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25 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent audiobook

Would you listen to The Great Gatsby again? Why?

Yes. It was well read by the narrator, and of course it is one of the best books ever written.

What did you like best about this story?

The setting, the tale of unrequited love-- even though Gatsby turns out to be a stalker.

What does William Hope bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

This might sound odd, but his voice seemed to fit with the era.

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8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Great Confusion, Gatsby!

I read an article a week or so ago, criticizing electronic reviews, and pointing out that in some cases, the reviewer obviously hadn't read the review because its rating was so low. One of the examples quoted was a 1-star rating for this book, "The Great Gatsby." The article's writer pointed out that this is one of the greatest novels of the 20th century.

I can completely understand a 1-star rating for this book, although my rating is higher. I, too, was bored at the beginning. I almost stopped listening after the first third of the book. I kept going because I wanted to know why this was considered a great novel. I'd heard so much about it.

The story became more lively, and the characters became more complex and more interesting. By the end, I was enthralled. When I finished the book, I spent quite a lot of time thinking about what it meant.

Before I wrote this review, I read several other reviews, and I realized that one of the reasons the book is considered great is that individual readers see the book differently.

I saw the main characters and the story as a metaphor for a dissolute age, and I thought that the story could have taken place in the 1990's just as easily as it takes place in the 1920's. In both eras, the world was relatively at peace. Money could be easily made, impressions bought, and everyone wanted to be friends with the hottest celebrity around.

With a book like this, there's a temptation to just get the Cliff Notes to discuss the book knowledgeably, without reading it. Avoid the temptation - that would be like eating a Hershey's Bar instead of Godiva Chocolate.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great Gatsby - Audio Book - Hope

Book - Rated as a classic it not sure if it should be in the top 50. However, I see it is a classic and a very good piece of work. The chief asset is the narration, characters, and description prose. I did not find the plot terribly grand but that was backdrop for the chararacter.

Production - A very good production and presentation.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

The writing is excellent as is the narrator.

The Great Gatsby
By F. Scott Fitzgerald
Narrator by William Hope
Brilliantly written I liked the writing far more than the story.
The narrator did his job well and the story came alive but the general sound level was very low.
So back to the story. The author is brilliant. The way he engages the reader is amazing. The tragic nature of the story was not to my liking but I can't expect all of life to be rainbows and butterflies can I?

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Gripping reading!

What about William Hope’s performance did you like?

Great reading - brought the book to life

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, I think it was 2 sittings :)

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

It's Gatsby

Always a pleasure to relish in Nick Carroway's wistful musing of the glorious celebration of one man's pursuit and capture of the American Dream and the damage wrought when that dream is centered on possessing the one thing he really can never truly have.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Good story

Interesting story and it's also very short. The narrator did a nice job with it as well.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

classic.

its been around all these years for a reason. the story isn't exciting or thrilling - its just a great story told in a way that unfolds like a napkin. piece by piece. you get sucked in to the lives of the characters. well done.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Not compelling anymore

I know this is a classic one, anyone who likes to read heard about it. People quote from it, and it was mentioned in films many times. But I must say: I didn't like it.

I admit: the language is nice, the narrative has a style, and in general I liked how the sentences flowed. But the book is old, and the story is boring for the contemporary reader. Nowadays we so got to used to the fast paced novels, that for me it seemed that the Great Gatsby's story stalled for the half of the book. The beauty of the narration is just not enough now.

It may have received high reviews those old days, but it is still on sale, and I cannot evaluate it other way than from the view of the modern literature.

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