The worst of the Fitzgerald biographies, crabbed and inessential. Beatrice Dance and the almost completely unproductive years in the mid-30s seem to dominate it if only because nobody else had let them dominate a biography before; meanwhile, an absurd, oblivious preface dismisses the far superior work that other biographers had already done. Milton Stern, another superior Fitzgerald critic, was being charitable when he opened his review with, "This is a readable book that leaves one wondering why it's been written." Read literally anything else with Fitzgerald's name on it before trying this one. Unless you're looking for the definitive biography of Beatrice Dance.
I wish I could give the book a higher rating for the writing, but the content was so depressing, it is hard to say I did more than like the book!I had no idea how depraved the lives of Fitzgerald and his wife were. Simply stated, they were not nice people. I always thought the Great Gatsby was a cautionary tale about being a better person, but after reading his biography, I think Fitzgerald was writing about the only kind of people he knew. I really felt sorry for him and had to remind myself that there is goodness in humanity.
Do You like book Scott Fitzgerald: A Biography (1994)?
