This book consists of several collections of short stories by Fitzgerald, namely ‘Flappers and Philosophers’ (1920), ‘Tales of the Jazz Age’ (1922), ‘All the Sad Young Men’ (1926), ‘Taps at Reveille’ (1935) and uncollected stories.
As with all short stories, some are hugely enjoyable and others less so. All of the stories however seem to have a melancholy, or an air of regret about them. Fitzgerald often wrote about disillusion and disappointment, but he did it so eloquently and beautifully that they were a pleasure to read even while you are commiserating with the protagonist.
My favourite stories were ‘Bernice Bobs Her Hair’, ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ (which I have read before and reviewed independently on this blog, but which I read again as part of this book, and again enjoyed greatly), ‘The Rough Crossing’ and the various Pat Hobby tales, which feature among the uncollected stories.
The only issue I have with short stories (any short stories, not just these) is that they tend to end rather abruptly; that is the case with some of the stories here, but the writing is so lovely to read that it really doesn’t matter. I prefer novels, where I can really get to know a character, but as short story writers go, Fitzgerald is up there with the best of them.
(For more information on the author, please click here.)
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Click here for my review of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’.
Between the Pages 
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