TTT#431 This Side of Home with Renee Watson, Linda Christensen, Andrew Kulak, Jefferson HS students. Close To Home (Tracy Crosswhite 5). Vestibular Rehabilitation Exercises – Level 1, page 2. Head exercises / Gaze stabilization. Target must remain in focus, not blurry, and appear stationary while head is in motion. Perform exercise with little head movement (45º to either side of midline). Speed of head movement should be increased as long as the target stays in focus.
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Identical twins Nikki and Maya have been on the same page for everything—friends, school, boys and starting off their adult lives at a historically African-American college. But as their neighborhood goes from rough-and-tumble to up-and-coming, suddenly filled with pretty coffee shops and boutiques, Nikki is thrilled while Maya feels like their home is slipping away. Sudde...more
Published February 3rd 2015 by Bloomsbury USA Childrens
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SummerTo respect everyone's culture
willafulFangirl by Rainbow Rowell is somewhat similar, in that it's also about an identical twin whose sister is separating from her. The other plot elements…moreFangirl by Rainbow Rowell is somewhat similar, in that it's also about an identical twin whose sister is separating from her. The other plot elements are quite different, though.(less)
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Renée Watson's debut novel THIS SIDE OF HOME is the story of Maya's senior year at high school. It starts with a big change, when her best friend is evicted from the house across the street and has to move across town. The new family that moves in is white, just like most of the families moving into the historically black neighborhood.
Maya is passionate about her town, about the history of her neighborhood and school and the people who have lived there. She's angered by the gentrification, by th...more
Apr 19, 2017Heather rated it liked it
3.5
Really enjoyed this book & the message it had!
Jan 31, 2017Latanya (Crafty Scribbles) rated it it was amazing · review of another editionReally enjoyed this book & the message it had!
Shelves: contemporary, food-for-the-melaninated-soul, favorites, ya, ownvoices, african-american, realistic-fiction, society
My name is L.
I have a problem.
I read YA fiction and I love the state I'm in.
But, YA doesn't tend to love some of its readers back.
However, sometimes I find what's offered in this 'subgenre' (as it's not a genre, but rather a geared audience) anemic and offering little variation in plot, characters, and even book aesthetic. When I find a true gem, I must shout. This Side of Home offers a story many desire, but few see.
Pros:
1. A strong and relatable female protagonist. She's not perfect. She pos...more
I have a problem.
I read YA fiction and I love the state I'm in.
But, YA doesn't tend to love some of its readers back.
However, sometimes I find what's offered in this 'subgenre' (as it's not a genre, but rather a geared audience) anemic and offering little variation in plot, characters, and even book aesthetic. When I find a true gem, I must shout. This Side of Home offers a story many desire, but few see.
Pros:
1. A strong and relatable female protagonist. She's not perfect. She pos...more
Dec 31, 2018Kate (GirlReading) rated it it was amazing
This Side Of Home is the second of Renée Watson’s books I’ve read and it most certainly wont be my last. She has such an incredible talent for expressing power and depth within her words, with an ease that I’m in awe of. Her writing may seem simple due to being so easy to read, yet it is anything but. She simply doesn’t need to cram her pages with flowery descriptions to tell her stories. Her tone is lyrical, yet to the point and I love it so much.
This Side Of Home was powerful, fun, heartwarmi...more
This Side Of Home was powerful, fun, heartwarmi...more
Sep 27, 2018Shalea Reece rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
This was so good! I loved the message, the romance, and the friendship! I'm definitely going to read more by this author ?❤...more
Nov 16, 2014Shane rated it really liked it Shelves: contemporary, young-adult, siblings, realistic-fiction
It's been a while since I've read a book so peppered in culture and the highs and lows of racial differences, but I must say I truly liked this story for all it stood for and the way in which it was written.
This Side of Home tells the story of Maya, and the tight bond she has with her twin sister, Nikki, and her best friend Essence. It's also about coping with changes, to oneself and to everything around you. Her whole life, Maya had everything mapped out, so it was understandable that she'd fe...more
This Side of Home tells the story of Maya, and the tight bond she has with her twin sister, Nikki, and her best friend Essence. It's also about coping with changes, to oneself and to everything around you. Her whole life, Maya had everything mapped out, so it was understandable that she'd fe...more
Feb 28, 2015Jenny Bunting rated it really liked it
This is a fantastic YA debut novel about an African American girl named Maya whose heart is set on attending a historically black college with her twin, Nikki, and their best friend Essence after high school. Their neighborhood in Portland, OR is changing with an influx of redevelopment and the demographic is changing. Maya is incredibly resistant to change and wants things to stay the way they are while Nikki accepts change a little too easily for Maya.
I thought it was so refreshing for this s...more
Feb 01, 2017Danielle (Life of a Literary Nerd) rated it it was amazingI thought it was so refreshing for this s...more
Shelves: contemporary, poc-main-character, favorites, standalones, cover-envy
I LOVED this book. First of all, I’m a sucker for a twin story, being one myself I love reading about twin sisters (especially if they don’t hate each other) and this book did not disappoint. This Side of Home is a gorgeous and thought provoking book about gentrification, community, and identity. It’s filled with warmth and love and heart and frustration and indecision and stubbornness. I just loved it so much!!
Pros:
-Maya & Nikki. Like I said, I’m a sucker for twin stories, especially twin...more
This was book was just amazing!
I saw this book in a video one of my favourite booktubers made and I decided to give it a go because she said she enjoyed it a lot. I am so glad I picked it up because it was such an educational and emotional read.
As a white European I don't get to communicate with people of colour that often, especially African-Americans. I never knew the extent of the problems and struggles they face on a daily basis. I am so happy that I now know thanks to this book.
I definit...more
I saw this book in a video one of my favourite booktubers made and I decided to give it a go because she said she enjoyed it a lot. I am so glad I picked it up because it was such an educational and emotional read.
As a white European I don't get to communicate with people of colour that often, especially African-Americans. I never knew the extent of the problems and struggles they face on a daily basis. I am so happy that I now know thanks to this book.
I definit...more
Dec 16, 2014Christine rated it really liked it
This is a great young adult book. I was lucky enough to have won this through a Goodreads giveaway, and it's definitely one of my favorite ya that I have received. It is quite true to high school, and relevant. Nicely written, and I loved how it isn't focused around sex. A lovely change.
Aug 06, 2014Paige (Illegal in 3 Countries) rated it it was amazing Shelves: fuck-yeah-diversity, favorites, tbtb-wishlist
See more of my reviews on The YA Kitten! My copy was an ARC I received from the publisher via NetGalley.
Some books are just too gorgeous to talk about for a certain period of time after you read them. Every time you try, all the emotions come rushing back in and you choke up like I did that time I was in my school musical in sixth grade (don’t ask anything about it because it ties into the horrible story of one of my brother’s ex-girlfriends). This Side of Home is one such book. All I could say...more
Some books are just too gorgeous to talk about for a certain period of time after you read them. Every time you try, all the emotions come rushing back in and you choke up like I did that time I was in my school musical in sixth grade (don’t ask anything about it because it ties into the horrible story of one of my brother’s ex-girlfriends). This Side of Home is one such book. All I could say...more
May 01, 2017Kelly (Diva Booknerd) rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Senior Maya Younger is a remarkable young woman, articulate, intelligent and ambitious. Identical siblings Maya and Nikki aspire to attend Spelman College, a historically black liberal arts college for women. The Portland neighbourhood is evolving, a predominantly black community displaced by white residents and corporate franchise stores.
They've painted and planted and made beauty out of decaying dreams. Block after block, strangers kept coming to Jackson Avenue, kept coming and changing and r...more
It was very much a YA story...but so much better! I loved how the author touched on so many things that make up a part of being black. A very subtle read! I'd definitely recommend this!
Nov 15, 2014Rich in Color rated it really liked it
Review copy: ARC via Netgalley
This Side of Home is a solid debut by Renée Watson. While it shares many of the same tropes as other coming-of-age stories, the execution is what sets this book apart. Watson does a commendable job of painting a community in transition as gentrification drives old residents out and changes narrator Maya’s world in both obvious and subtle ways. Watching Maya and her neighborhood as they handled—or didn’t handle—the tumult made for a compelling story.
There were many s...more
This Side of Home is a solid debut by Renée Watson. While it shares many of the same tropes as other coming-of-age stories, the execution is what sets this book apart. Watson does a commendable job of painting a community in transition as gentrification drives old residents out and changes narrator Maya’s world in both obvious and subtle ways. Watching Maya and her neighborhood as they handled—or didn’t handle—the tumult made for a compelling story.
There were many s...more
Nikki and Maya (both named after the poets) love their Portland neighborhood, but it is slowly gentrifying, with coffee shops opening in the homes of their old friends. Nikki thinks it's great, but Maya isn't a huge fan, especially when her friend Essence's house is sold and her friend moves 45 minutes away by bus. A new family moves in-- Kate, Tony, and their parents, who both work in community outreach jobs... and are white. Nikki takes to Kate right away, introducing her to life at their high...more
Dec 01, 2014Terri rated it liked it
Review also found at http://kristineandterri.blogspot.mx/2...
I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The expected publication date is February 3rd 2015.
The synopsis provided for this story pretty much captures the essence of this story (too funny that one of the characters names is Essence!). This story is about two sisters who are experiencing changes in their environment and how they deal with it differently. It addresses the...more
Nov 15, 2015Shannon rated it it was amazingI received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The expected publication date is February 3rd 2015.
The synopsis provided for this story pretty much captures the essence of this story (too funny that one of the characters names is Essence!). This story is about two sisters who are experiencing changes in their environment and how they deal with it differently. It addresses the...more
Shelves: university, high-school, twins, neighbors, moving-house, portland, african-americans, urban, social-justice, gentrification
This is THE most timely and relevant book for my neighborhood in Seattle, which is undergoing the same social and emotional turbulence of gentrification as Portland depicted in this story.
Complications of loyalty, repercussions of activism, and the changing nature of childhood promises add depth. Main character Maya is the only character fully realized but I recognized all the rest as the community I interact with daily. My own experiences fleshed out what some might consider to be flimsy secon...more
Apr 21, 2015Becky rated it really liked itComplications of loyalty, repercussions of activism, and the changing nature of childhood promises add depth. Main character Maya is the only character fully realized but I recognized all the rest as the community I interact with daily. My own experiences fleshed out what some might consider to be flimsy secon...more
Shelves: ya, brothers-and-sisters, fya-book-club, twins, northwest
This book reads much younger than I was expecting it to, so it took me a while to really get into it. But there's a lot I like about it, like the conversation Maya has with the old man in the coffee shop about Vanport and Portland's Black history, and the small but significant discussion about how hard it can be to have a parent who is an activist and puts community work first, and how exhausting it can be to always feel like you have to represent something.
I think that 'This Side of Home' is one of the best books that I have ever read because I've learned so much from it. I could also relate to the story because I live in the neighborhood that the book is based on. I can understand how the neighborhood is gentrified and I know exactly how Maya feels about her neighborhood. One of the biggest things that I learned from this book is that you should always ask questions and fight for what you believe is right.
Mar 29, 2015Rincey rated it really liked it
My full review can be seen here https://youtu.be/bWJfm4oyLSU
Feb 21, 2019LynnDee (The Library Lush) rated it liked it Shelves: social-issues, young-adult, contemporary, own-voices
I appreciated this story for the window it provided me into what it's like being a black girl living in a neighborhood that is slowly becoming gentrified. The more I read stories like this, the more I learn and the better ally I can be. What I didn't care for was the the way there was a lot of telling and not a lot of showing. The message just seemed to be repeated over and over. However, I do realize that I am probably not the reader the author intended this book for, and that teens might benef...more
Oct 30, 2014Christina rated it really liked it
4.5 stars
Please support my blog and read my review here: http://adventures-in-polishland.com/2...
I've been on such a YA contemporary kick lately, and This Side of Home is a great addition to the list. The story chronicles the life of twins Nikki and Maya as they finish up their last year of high school. Maya is our first-person narrator, and lets readers into her life in Portland, Oregon. The neighborhood in which she grew up is changing – new businesses are popping up everywhere, new families...more
Please support my blog and read my review here: http://adventures-in-polishland.com/2...
I've been on such a YA contemporary kick lately, and This Side of Home is a great addition to the list. The story chronicles the life of twins Nikki and Maya as they finish up their last year of high school. Maya is our first-person narrator, and lets readers into her life in Portland, Oregon. The neighborhood in which she grew up is changing – new businesses are popping up everywhere, new families...more
This is a book everyone should read.
Beautifully written and thought-provoking, This Side of Home takes a refreshingly honest look at how cultural changes affects not only the relationship between twin sisters Maya and Nikki, but everyone around them, regardless of the color of their skin.
What I Liked:
~ The sisterly bond between Maya and Nikki, how they challenged and supported each other.
~ Their longtime friendship with Essence as well as the ones they formed with the new kids.
~ Maya and Nikk...more
Feb 10, 2015Annette rated it it was amazingBeautifully written and thought-provoking, This Side of Home takes a refreshingly honest look at how cultural changes affects not only the relationship between twin sisters Maya and Nikki, but everyone around them, regardless of the color of their skin.
What I Liked:
~ The sisterly bond between Maya and Nikki, how they challenged and supported each other.
~ Their longtime friendship with Essence as well as the ones they formed with the new kids.
~ Maya and Nikk...more
Shelves: young-adult, portland, urban-renewal, community-identity, ethnic-identity, racial-identity, teen, contemporary, realistic-fiction, cultural-identity
THIS SIDE OF HOME by Renée Watson is an inspiring YA novel following a young woman facing the timely issues of racial, ethnic, cultural, and community identify.
Her neighborhood is changing and Maya is concerned about the impact this evolution will have on her school and community. The Portland, Oregon setting is perfect for a discussion of changing neighbors and reflects the urban renewal pressures facing many American cities.
Watson brings the difficult topics of race and community alive throug...more
Jul 01, 2014Katie rated it really liked itHer neighborhood is changing and Maya is concerned about the impact this evolution will have on her school and community. The Portland, Oregon setting is perfect for a discussion of changing neighbors and reflects the urban renewal pressures facing many American cities.
Watson brings the difficult topics of race and community alive throug...more
Shelves: format-ebook, books-read-in-2015-new, books-read-in-2015, how-library
I liked this. I liked that it was set in the Pacific Northwest! The descriptions of the weather were so great. That rain that lingers forever into summer, only to be taken over by hot weather that destroys everyone! And I liked that it took place over an entire year. MORE YA THAT DOES THAT, PLEASE. (Actually. More books in general that do that.)
Buuut I think the book dealt with too much. Like, I don't feel like I got much of a sense of Maya and Nikki's relationship. (And I never quite lost my fe...more
Buuut I think the book dealt with too much. Like, I don't feel like I got much of a sense of Maya and Nikki's relationship. (And I never quite lost my fe...more
Apr 02, 2015Rachael Robson rated it really liked it
I wish there was an option to give this book 4.5 stars. I loved it, but just not quite enough to call it a new favorite.
Here is my video review.
CONTENT ADVISORY:
This book is set in a lower-income urban neighborhood, where, until recently, violence has been routine. There are several (brief, not explicit) references to violent incidents in the past. One character's mother is an alcoholic and shows up drunk throughout the book. There is teen romance, and some kissing, but nothing further or mo...more
Here is my video review.
CONTENT ADVISORY:
This book is set in a lower-income urban neighborhood, where, until recently, violence has been routine. There are several (brief, not explicit) references to violent incidents in the past. One character's mother is an alcoholic and shows up drunk throughout the book. There is teen romance, and some kissing, but nothing further or mo...more
Feb 16, 2016Jocelin rated it liked it
This Side Of Home is a story about twins Maya & Nikki. They were named after famous African American poets Maya Angelou Nad Nikki Giovanni. They are living in a neighborhood in Portland, Oregon that is going through a resurrection (gentrification). Because of this gentrification, it causes their oldest and dearest friend Essence to move to away from them. Essence is essentially the 'third' twin. You see their life being played out with their last year of school with controversies, new friend...more
Jun 19, 2015Lucie Ferguson rated it really liked it
Young adult fiction about gentrification in Portland Oregon? This book was made for me!
'This Side of Home' follows Maya, a high school senior living in a historically black neighborhood in Portland, over the course of a year. Maya and her twin sister Nikki are starting to grow apart as they feel differently about how to deal with the changes in their neighborhood - changes that impact their best friend Essence as well as the culture of their high school.
At first glance, this plot is a tad bit g...more
'This Side of Home' follows Maya, a high school senior living in a historically black neighborhood in Portland, over the course of a year. Maya and her twin sister Nikki are starting to grow apart as they feel differently about how to deal with the changes in their neighborhood - changes that impact their best friend Essence as well as the culture of their high school.
At first glance, this plot is a tad bit g...more
May 25, 2015Josie rated it it was amazing
This is one of the best teen/young adult novels I’ve read in a long, long, time.
From the beginning of the story, I was drawn to the author's lyrical prose and Maya’s powerful voice as an intelligent, insightful, and vulnerable character. She felt real and was likable.
I also grew up in Portland, Oregon and could identify with the complex issues surrounding the gentrification of the city, especially on the North and Northeast sides. Like Maya, I understand that there is some good in the changes,...more
From the beginning of the story, I was drawn to the author's lyrical prose and Maya’s powerful voice as an intelligent, insightful, and vulnerable character. She felt real and was likable.
I also grew up in Portland, Oregon and could identify with the complex issues surrounding the gentrification of the city, especially on the North and Northeast sides. Like Maya, I understand that there is some good in the changes,...more
Nov 04, 2015Shelley M. rated it it was amazing
Loved it. This book should be required reading for all Portland residents. There’s a ton of Portland history, and gentrification explained by the people that it’s happening to. It made me understand gentrification a lot better than something more academic would, to see Nikki and Maya’s conflicting opinions of the changes in their neighborhood and how the changes impacted their friends and neighbors. And there was plenty of classic YA stuff like secrets, changing friendships, and romance. Plus th...more
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To you, what makes this book so mature, and wonderful to you? | 1 | 2 | Apr 22, 2017 11:40AM |
To you, what makes this book so mature, and wonderful to you? | 1 | 1 | Apr 22, 2017 11:39AM |
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Renée Watson is the author of the children’s picture book, A Place Where Hurricanes Happen (Random House, June 2010), which was featured on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. Her middle grade novel, What Momma Left Me debuted as the New Voice for 2010 in middle grade fiction by The Independent Children's Booksellers Association.
Renée’s one woman show, Roses are Red, Women are Blue, debuted at N...more
Renée’s one woman show, Roses are Red, Women are Blue, debuted at N...more
“Am I a hypocrite?” I ask. “You’re a black girl who fell in love with a white boy.” “And a black girl who cares about race and class issues.” Nikki leans back in the chair. “You can be both.” — 8 likes
“Okay, Maya. I get it. Just drop it. You don't want a nice, clean neighborhood. You'd rather drive all the way downtown for a good restaurant or get on the bus to go to the mall. You don't want-'
'Are you serious right now? Did I say I didn't want those things?'
'Well, that's how you're acting.'
'I want things to be fair. And something is not fair when black men and women are turned down for business loans over and over again, but others aren't.” — 2 likes
More quotes…'Are you serious right now? Did I say I didn't want those things?'
'Well, that's how you're acting.'
'I want things to be fair. And something is not fair when black men and women are turned down for business loans over and over again, but others aren't.”
Author | F. Scott Fitzgerald |
---|---|
Cover artist | William E. Hill |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre | Novel |
Publisher | Scribner |
Publication date | March 26, 1920 |
Media type | Print (hardcover and paperback) |
Pages | 305 (first edition hardcover) |
ISBN | 0-684-84378-1 |
Followed by | The Beautiful and Damned (1922) |
This Side of Paradise is the debut novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, published in 1920. The book examines the lives and morality of post–World War I youth. Its protagonist Amory Blaine is an attractive student at Princeton University who dabbles in literature. The novel explores the theme of love warped by greed and status seeking, and takes its title from a line of Rupert Brooke's poem Tiare Tahiti. The novel famously helped F. Scott Fitzgerald gain Zelda Sayre's hand in marriage; its publication was her condition of acceptance.
Background[edit]
In the summer of 1919, after less than a year of courtship, Zelda Sayre broke up with the 22-year-old Fitzgerald. After a summer of heavy drinking, he returned to St. Paul, Minnesota, where his family lived, to complete the novel, hoping that if he became a successful novelist he could win Zelda back. While at Princeton (notably in University Cottage Club's library), Fitzgerald had written the unpublished novel The Romantic Egotist, and ultimately 81 pages of the typescript of this earlier work was included in This Side of Paradise.[1]
On September 4, 1919, Fitzgerald gave the manuscript to his friend Shane Leslie to deliver to Maxwell Perkins, an editor at Charles Scribner's Sons in New York. The book was nearly rejected by the editors at Scribners, but Perkins insisted, and on September 16, it officially was accepted. Fitzgerald begged for early publication—convinced that he would become a celebrity and impress Zelda—but was told that the novel would have to wait until the spring. Nevertheless, upon the acceptance of his novel for publication he went and visited Zelda, and she agreed to marry him.[2][3][4]
Publication[edit]
F. Scott Fitzgerald circa 1920 when This Side of Paradise was published.
This Side of Paradise was published on March 26, 1920, with a first printing of 3,000 copies. The initial printing sold out in three days. On March 30, four days after publication and one day after selling out the first printing, Fitzgerald wired Zelda to come to New York and get married that weekend. Barely a week after publication, Zelda and Scott married in New York on April 3, 1920.[5]
The book went through 12 printings in 1920 and 1921 for a total of 49,075 copies.[6] The novel did not provide a huge income for Fitzgerald. Copies sold for $1.75, for which he earned 10% on the first 5,000 copies and 15% beyond that. In total, in 1920 he earned $6,200 ($82,095.27 in 2015 dollars) from the book. His new fame enabled him to earn much higher rates for his short stories.[citation needed]
Plot summary[edit]
The book is written in three parts.
'Book One: The Romantic Egotist'—The novel centers on Amory Blaine, a young Midwesterner who, convinced that he has an exceptionally promising future, attends boarding school and later Princeton University. He leaves behind his eccentric mother Beatrice and befriends Monsignor Darcy, a close friend of his mother. While at Princeton he goes back to Minneapolis, where he re-encounters Isabelle Borgé, a young lady whom he had met as a little boy, and starts a romantic relationship with her. At Princeton, he repeatedly writes ever more flowery poems, but Amory and Isabelle become disenchanted with each other after meeting again at his prom.
'Interlude'—Following their break-up, Amory is shipped overseas to serve in the army in World War I. (Fitzgerald had been in the army himself, but the war ended while he was stationed on Long Island.) Amory's experiences in the war are not described, other than to say later in the book that he was a bayonet instructor.
'Book Two: The Education of a Personage'—After the war, Amory falls in love with a New York debutante named Rosalind Connage. Because he is poor, however, this relationship collapses as well; Rosalind decides to marry a wealthy man instead. A devastated Amory is further crushed to learn that his mentor Monsignor Darcy has died. The book ends with Amory's iconic lament 'I know myself, but that is all-'.[7]
Characters[edit]
Ginevra King—whom Fitzgerald romantically pursued as a young man—inspired the character of Isabelle Borgé. King was often mentioned in the Chicago press as among the city's 'four most desirable' debutantes.
Most of the characters are drawn directly from Fitzgerald's own life:[8][9]
- Amory Blaine—the protagonist of the book, is clearly based on Fitzgerald. Both are from the Midwest, attended Princeton, had a failed romance with a debutante, served in the army, then had a failed romance with a second debutante (though after the success of This Side of Paradise, Fitzgerald won back Zelda).
- Beatrice Blaine—Blaine's mother was actually based on the mother of one of Fitzgerald's friends.
- Isabelle Borgé—Amory Blaine's first love is based on the Chicago debutante Ginevra King, Fitzgerald's first love.[10][11]
- Monsignor Darcy—Blaine's spiritual mentor is based on a Sigourney Fay, to whom Fitzgerald was close. Fay was from Minneapolis.[citation needed]
- Rosalind Connage—Amory Blaine's second love is based on Zelda Sayre, Fitzgerald's second love. However, unlike Zelda, Rosalind was from New York. Rosalind is also partially based on the character Beatrice Normandy from H.G. Wells's novel Tono-Bungay (1909).[citation needed]
- Cecilia Connage—Rosalind's cynical younger sister.[citation needed]
- Thomas Parke D'Invilliers—one of Blaine's close friends (also the fictitious author of the poem at the start of The Great Gatsby) was based on the poet John Peale Bishop, Fitzgerald's friend and classmate.[citation needed]
- Eleanor Savage—a girl Amory meets in Maryland. Eleanor's character serves as a 'love interest, therapeutic friend, and conversational other'. Highly educated and discussing poetry and philosophy, 'Eleanor not only posits her desires in juxtaposition to the lingering Victorian expectations of women in her day but also serves as soothsayer to the demands which would be placed on females'.[12]
- Clara Page—Amory's widowed cousin, whom he loves, but she doesn't love him.
Style[edit]
This Side of Paradise blends different styles of writing: It is, at times, a fictional narrative, at times free verse, and at times a narrative drama, interspersed with letters and poems from Amory. In fact, the novel's blend of styles was the result of Fitzgerald's cobbling The Romantic Egotist, his earlier attempt at a novel, together with assorted short stories and poems that he had composed but never published. The occasional switch from third person to second person gives the hint that the story is semi-autobiographical.[13]
Critical favour[edit]
Many reviewers were enthusiastic. Burton Rascoe of the Chicago Tribune wrote 'it bears the impress, it seems to me, of genius. It is the only adequate study that we have had of the contemporary American in adolescence and young manhood.'[14]H.L. Mencken wrote This Side of Paradise was the 'best American novel that I have seen of late.'[15]
One reader who was not entirely pleased, however, was John Grier Hibben, the president of Princeton University: 'I cannot bear to think that our young men are merely living four years in a country club and spending their lives wholly in a spirit of calculation and snobbishness'.[16]
![This This](/uploads/1/2/5/2/125212042/940557821.jpg)
Legacy and modern analysis[edit]
The book has been the subject of diverse studies in research studying Fitzgerald's career[16] as well as essays looking at development of narcissism[17] and feminism[12] in literature.
Saori Tanaka's essay on narcissism argues that 'Amory comes to know himself through Beatrice and his four lovers, which are like five sheets of glass. They are his reflectors (...) reflecting his narcissism and the inner side.[17] The first three women in the book allow Amory to dream in a narcissistic way:
- Beatrice. She is the basis of both his nervousness and romanticism. He is attracted to her exquisite delicacy despite 'no illusions about her' and has a sense of superiority.
- Isabelle. A beautiful girl in Minneapolis is a replica of his perfect self. Amory identifies himself with her because she is his twin in 'good looks and an excitable temperament'.
- Clara. She is ideal, clean, brilliant and casts light upon him as her name suggests. Her holiness and goodness will save him from his fear of temptation and evil.
The last two women he meets, after participating in the war and losing his financial foundation 'make him not dream but awake in postwar act II':
- Rosalind. Seemingly reminiscent of actress-like Isabelle, she sells her love to satisfy her narcissism infinitely. She kills not herself but his love (...) when she rejects 'his lips against her wet cheek'. She makes Amory lose 'the illusion of eternal youth'
- Eleanor. The last women who leaves Amory the pain of knowing himself. She is the sole muse who projects his precise image. Eleanor echoes Amory's 'black old inside self' and exposes his soul.
Tanaka states that: 'With Beatrice and Isabelle, Amory activates the grandiose self, with Clara and Rosalind, he restricts narcissism, and with Eleanor, he gains a realistic conception of the self.'[17]
In popular culture[edit]
In the television series 30 Rock,[when?] the character Jack Donaghy (played by Alec Baldwin) says that he was awarded the 'Amory Blaine Handsomeness Scholarship' by Princeton University.
The 24th episode of the first season of Star Trek is called 'This Side of Paradise' as well. Both were inspired by Rupert Brooke's poem 'Tiare Tahiti'.
The book is read by Charlie, the main character, in Stephen Chbosky's novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower.[18]
Alternative band Glass Animals subtly referenced the novel on their 2016 album How to Be a Human Being, with a track titled 'The Other Side Of Paradise.' The lyrics detail a one-sided, chaotic relationship.
The central plot of John Grisham's Camino Island centers around F. Scott Fitzgerald's manuscripts, including This Side of Paradise, which, in the novel, were stolen from the Firestone Library at Princeton University.
In 'The Tale of the Bookish Babysitter' (Season 3 Episode 6 of the series 'Are You Afraid of the Dark' ), an excerpt from 'This Side of Paradise' is briefly visible. Near the end of the episode, one of the characters grabs a book from the storytellers hands and reads a paragraph aloud. The paragraph being read is not present in Fitzgerald's work. However, the surrounding text is from 'This Side of Paradise' and was likely used as filler for the shot.
References[edit]
- ^Bruccoli 2002, pp. 98–99
- ^Bruccoli 2002, p. 109
- ^Karin Ek (24 July 2015). 'BBC Sincerely F Scott Fitzgerald'. Retrieved 17 April 2018 – via YouTube.
- ^Fitzgerald, F. Scott (1920). This Side of Paradise. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
- ^Bruccoli 2002, pp. 127–28
- ^Bruccoli 2002, p. 133
- ^This Side of Paradise, p. 285
- ^Bruccoli 2002, pp. 123–124
- ^Mizener, Arthur (1972), Scott Fitzgerald and His World, New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons
- ^Noden, Merrell (November 5, 2003). 'Fitzgerald's first love'. Princeton Alumni Weekly.
- ^Stepanov, Renata (September 15, 2003). 'Family of Fitzgerald's lover donates correspondence'. The Daily Princetonian. Archived from the original on October 4, 2003.Cite uses deprecated parameter
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(help) - ^ abRiccardo, Andrew (1 January 2012). 'Anticipative Feminism in F. Scott Fitzgerald's This Side of Paradise and Flappers and Philosophers'. The Oswald Review: An International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Criticism in the Discipline of English. 14 (1): 26–57.
- ^West, James L.W. III, 'The question of vocation in This Side of Paradise and The Beautiful and Damned. In Prigozy 2002, pp. 48–56
- ^Bruccoli 2002, pp. 116–17
- ^Bruccoli 2002, p. 117
- ^ abBruccoli 2002, p. 125
- ^ abcTanaka, Saori (24 December 2014). 'Mirror Images Reflecting Self : Narcissism in F. Scott Fitzgerald's This Side of Paradise'. Osaka Literary Review. 43: 123–140. doi:10.18910/25224. hdl:11094/25224.
- ^Chbosky, Stephen (1999). The Perks of Being a Wallflower. New York: Pocket Books. p. 14.
Bibliography[edit]
- Bruccoli, Matthew Joseph (2002), Some Sort of Epic Grandeur: The Life of F. Scott Fitzgerald (2nd rev. ed.), Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, ISBN978-1-57003-455-8
- Prigozy, Ruth (ed.) (2002), The Cambridge Companion to F. Scott Fitzgerald, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ISBN978-0-521-62447-3CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
External links[edit]
Wikisource has original text related to this article: |
- This Side of Paradise at Project Gutenberg
- This Side of Paradise public domain audiobook at LibriVox
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