American Legends

*Includes pictures of important people and places.
*Includes some of Fitzgerald's most famous quotes.
*Analyzes the real life inspirations behind Fitzgerald's work and the stormy relationship with Zelda.
*Includes a Bibliography for further reading.
"All good writing is swimming under water and holding your breath." - F. Scott Fitzgerald A lot of ink has been spilled covering the lives of history's most influential figures, but how much of the forest is lost for the trees? In Charles River Editors' American Legends series, readers can get caught up to speed on the lives of America's most important men and women in the time it takes to finish a commute, while learning interesting facts long forgotten or never known.
The 1920s in the United States were known as the "Roaring Twenties" and the Jazz Age, a time in the nation that glorified hard and fast living. Nobody personified the age or wrote so descriptively about it better than F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940), whose name became synonymous with the times after penning the epic Great Gatsby.
Along with his dazzling wife Zelda, Fitzgerald was all too keen to play the role. When his writing made them celebrities, they were celebrated by the national press for being "young, seemingly wealthy, beautiful, and energetic." While Scott used their relationship as material in his novels, Zelda wrote herself, and she also strove to become a ballerina.
However, the Fitzgeralds barely outlasted the '20s. Their hard living left Fitzgerald, a notorious alcoholic, in poor health by the '30s. Financially broke, he would die of a massive heart attack in 1940, by which time Zelda had already suffered various mental illnesses. Zelda died in a freak fire in 1948, both Fitzgeralds having burned out almost as quickly as they had shined.
Interest in the Fitzgeralds, and particularly F. Scott Fitzgerald's writing, revived in the '50s and has been steady ever since, with Fitzgerald's Great Gatsby and other stories like This Side of Paradise being read in classrooms across the United States. In addition to their extraordinary literary quality, they continue to represent the optimism of the Roaring Twenties.
American Legends: The Life of F. Scott Fitzgerald profiles the life and career of one of America's most famous writers and cultural icons. Along with pictures of important people, places, and events, you will learn about F. Scott Fitzgerald like you never have before, in no time at all.