Just Finished Reading This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald

One of the books I've recently read, Camino Island by John Grisham, spotlights the most famous novels of American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, including his 1920 debut This Side of Paradise...naturally, I had to take a look-see for myself and just finished reading it.  Unlike with his contemporary James Joyce's confounding novel Ulysses, Fitzgerald's work struck a fine balance between plain narrative prose, abstract expression of thought, and poetry...it's no wonder his career took off after that!  That doesn't mean that I enjoyed This Side of Paradise: its protagonist, Amory Blaine, is a self-absorbed, pampered young man who struggles to grow up at class-conscious Princeton University while going through different love interests and spending much of his time partying with his buddies...WARNING: there are some plot spoilers ahead, in case you're planning on reading this novel for yourself.  Blaine's crowd is skeptical about their future and life in general...a realistic portrayal, I'm sure...it hints of the author writing about his own life...but not pleasant to read.  The story continues as America first enters World War I in 1917 and then afterwards makes Prohibition (of alcohol) as part of its Constitution...neither event good for Blaine and his pals, some of whom do not survive the war and practically all of whom spend much of their waking hours in various degrees of intoxication.  Blaine has a small number of young women he has been romantically involved with...when his chief interest throws him over to marry a rich man, he becomes very cynical about life and alters his worldview to embrace socialism...

One thing that struck me about This Side of Paradise was that sense of cynicism about American society that Blaine develops and expresses at the end of the book in a lengthy, sometimes heated conversation between him and a couple of older, more financially successful men who have stopped to give him a ride.  Here Blaine makes the point that in order to be fair, society must give children from all backgrounds, regardless of their families' wealth or position, the same opportunities for education and advancement...this is the main reason he endorses socialism.  I see some of this going on a century later with our millennials, many of them enjoying a high standard of living but nevertheless feeling skeptical about their future and embracing more socialist-leaning policies as a remedy for our society's problems.  Interesting...I'm definitely going to look into Fitzgerald's other novels as well...