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Title: Excellence
Review: I think, or I glean, that American high school students are required to read this book, held up as a shining example of national literature. Perhaps because I'm not American, this novel wasn't on any lists when I studied English in high school and university. Just as well; I mightn't have appreciated it then.It's understandable that The Great Gatsby would be taught; it's damned good. It's tight, compact, linear, and practically every sentence is a work of art. I bought the audio book and listened to it twice. Then I picked up the novel and read it in a couple of days. It's excellent; there's no way around it. It's also rather different from Tender is the Night, also good, perhaps more evolved, but not nearly as flash or impactful.If someone employed Fitzgerald's style today, their prose would likely be labeled too ornate. A shame, because it's poetic and powerfully descriptive.Troy Parfitt is the author of Why China Will Never Rule the World
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