The Great Gatsby: A Norton Critical Edition (Norton Critical Editions)

Of course it’s a classic, but it is a gift and it came damaged. I hate the waste of time and resources it would take to return it, so we will keep it anyway. We will still enjoy reading it, it’s just such a bummer to buy something new and have it not LOOK new.

There are many editions of this Modernist American classic; it’s a standard text in higher secondary schools across the world. This particular edition, typical of Norton Critical Editions, is exemplary: expertly edited text; superb secondary texts including Fitzgerald’s notebook entries, letters and several short stories supplying context and exploration of the novel’s ideas; comprehensive range of criticism and reviews from initial reception 1925/26 to an article written especially for this edition - “The Great Gatsby Curve” - a fascinating theory exploring the intersection of economics and the popularity of the novel as a High School text. If you are studying Gatsby at University undergraduate level, or reading for pleasure (but seek something that provides additional scholarship) this edition is highly recommended.