About F. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (1896–1940) was the defining literary voice of the Roaring Twenties. Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, he dropped out of Princeton to join the Army and wrote his first novel, This Side of Paradise, while stationed at Camp Sheridan. Its success in 1920 made him famous overnight and allowed him to marry Zelda Sayre.
The Fitzgeralds became icons of the Jazz Age — parties, extravagance, Paris, Riviera summers with Hemingway and the Murphys. But the decade's end brought personal and financial collapse: Zelda's mental breakdown, his own alcoholism, and declining sales. He died in Hollywood in 1940 at 44, considering himself a failure. The Great Gatsby was rediscovered during WWII and has never been out of print since.
Novels
Essential Short Fiction
Reading Order Guide
Where to start
Start with The Great Gatsby — it's short (180 pages), perfect, and immediately reveals whether Fitzgerald's voice works for you. Don't rush it.
Then read Tender Is the Night — most readers find it more emotionally devastating once they know Fitzgerald's biography. Some editions include his revised ordering.
For short fiction, look for a complete stories collection. "Babylon Revisited" and "Winter Dreams" are often anthologized and free to read online.