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The Notebooks of F. Scott Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald's notebook entries--more than two thousand, dating from 1932 to his death--are organized into twenty-three categories and provide a documentary record of his life and work
359 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 1978
4 people are currently reading
314 people want to read
About the author
F. Scott Fitzgerald
2,340 books25.6k followersFrancis Scott Key Fitzgerald, widely known simply as Scott Fitzgerald, was an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He is best known for his novels depicting the flamboyance and excess of the Jazz Age, a term he popularized in his short story collection Tales of the Jazz Age. During his lifetime, he published four novels, four story collections, and 164 short stories. Although he achieved temporary popular success and fortune in the 1920s, Fitzgerald received critical acclaim only after his death and is now widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century.
Born into a middle-class family in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Fitzgerald was raised primarily in New York state. He attended Princeton University where he befriended future literary critic Edmund Wilson. Owing to a failed romantic relationship with Chicago socialite Ginevra King, he dropped out in 1917 to join the United States Army during World War I. While stationed in Alabama, he met Zelda Sayre, a Southern debutante who belonged to Montgomery's exclusive country-club set. Although she initially rejected Fitzgerald's marriage proposal due to his lack of financial prospects, Zelda agreed to marry him after he published the commercially successful This Side of Paradise (1920). The novel became a cultural sensation and cemented his reputation as one of the eminent writers of the decade.
His second novel, The Beautiful and Damned (1922), propelled him further into the cultural elite. To maintain his affluent lifestyle, he wrote numerous stories for popular magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post, Collier's Weekly, and Esquire. During this period, Fitzgerald frequented Europe, where he befriended modernist writers and artists of the "Lost Generation" expatriate community, including Ernest Hemingway. His third novel, The Great Gatsby (1925), received generally favorable reviews but was a commercial failure, selling fewer than 23,000 copies in its first year. Despite its lackluster debut, The Great Gatsby is now hailed by some literary critics as the "Great American Novel". Following the deterioration of his wife's mental health and her placement in a mental institute for schizophrenia, Fitzgerald completed his final novel, Tender Is the Night (1934).
Struggling financially because of the declining popularity of his works during the Great Depression, Fitzgerald moved to Hollywood, where he embarked upon an unsuccessful career as a screenwriter. While living in Hollywood, he cohabited with columnist Sheilah Graham, his final companion before his death. After a long struggle with alcoholism, he attained sobriety only to die of a heart attack in 1940, at 44. His friend Edmund Wilson edited and published an unfinished fifth novel, The Last Tycoon (1941), after Fitzgerald's death. In 1993, a new edition was published as The Love of the Last Tycoon, edited by Matthew J. Bruccoli.
Born into a middle-class family in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Fitzgerald was raised primarily in New York state. He attended Princeton University where he befriended future literary critic Edmund Wilson. Owing to a failed romantic relationship with Chicago socialite Ginevra King, he dropped out in 1917 to join the United States Army during World War I. While stationed in Alabama, he met Zelda Sayre, a Southern debutante who belonged to Montgomery's exclusive country-club set. Although she initially rejected Fitzgerald's marriage proposal due to his lack of financial prospects, Zelda agreed to marry him after he published the commercially successful This Side of Paradise (1920). The novel became a cultural sensation and cemented his reputation as one of the eminent writers of the decade.
His second novel, The Beautiful and Damned (1922), propelled him further into the cultural elite. To maintain his affluent lifestyle, he wrote numerous stories for popular magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post, Collier's Weekly, and Esquire. During this period, Fitzgerald frequented Europe, where he befriended modernist writers and artists of the "Lost Generation" expatriate community, including Ernest Hemingway. His third novel, The Great Gatsby (1925), received generally favorable reviews but was a commercial failure, selling fewer than 23,000 copies in its first year. Despite its lackluster debut, The Great Gatsby is now hailed by some literary critics as the "Great American Novel". Following the deterioration of his wife's mental health and her placement in a mental institute for schizophrenia, Fitzgerald completed his final novel, Tender Is the Night (1934).
Struggling financially because of the declining popularity of his works during the Great Depression, Fitzgerald moved to Hollywood, where he embarked upon an unsuccessful career as a screenwriter. While living in Hollywood, he cohabited with columnist Sheilah Graham, his final companion before his death. After a long struggle with alcoholism, he attained sobriety only to die of a heart attack in 1940, at 44. His friend Edmund Wilson edited and published an unfinished fifth novel, The Last Tycoon (1941), after Fitzgerald's death. In 1993, a new edition was published as The Love of the Last Tycoon, edited by Matthew J. Bruccoli.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 22, 2024
On December 21, 1940, my good friend, F. Scott Fitzgerald, died at the tender age of 44, leaving behind his only child, a daughter Frances Scott Fitzgerald, commonly known as Scottie (like most of my friendships, it is a bit one-sided). As his heir, Scottie inherited all of Fitzgerald’s personal effects including the original manuscripts for his novels and all of his notes.
In 1950, Scottie donated these materials to the Princeton University Library, the university where Fitzgerald once attended classes (although he never graduated).
Many of these materials have been digitized and can delight viewers online for free!
Yes, you can even see the original version of The Great Gatsby!
However, there are a few materials that haven’t been digitized that have been rolling around in my mind ever since. Given my literary ambitions, I am being extremely understated. There are three items in the collection that I *NEED* to see:
1) Progress in 100 Best Books
2) Reading List
3) Revised List of 40 Books
When I purchased The Notebooks of F. Scott Fitzgerald, I was hoping and praying that these three items would be included.
Sadly, no dice. Not that I need any encouragement to visit a library and I am not one easily discouraged…..perhaps I shall set up a Kickstarter?
So what exactly is included?
2,078 notes.
They all aren’t brilliant, but there are some real winners.
Here are a few of my favorites:
23 Egyptian Proverb: The worst things:
To be in bed and sleep not,
To want for one who comes not,
To try to please and please not.
68 This is a tough girl and I’m taking her to tough place.
74 Feel wide awake – no but at least I feel born, which is more than I did the first time I woke up.
76 In utter weariness, he asked her once in different words, “then where do you go from here—where do you turn?”
“Toward life,” she said “Toward life,” and turned toward him.
85 I like writers. If you speak to a writer you often get an answer.
316 Show me a hero and I will write you a tragedy.
330 You don’t write because you want to say something; you write because you’ve got something to say.
746 Two middle-aged well dressed men meet on bridge where each intends suicide. They exchange stories. One has succeeded too late after terrible struggles, loss of girls, etc. The other begins with great dreams, hint frustration, etc. But surprise end is, “No, I got it.” (Please someone write this book!)
1278 If you’re strong enough there are no precedents.
1947 Advice to young writers—Read Tolstoi, Marx and DH Lawrence and then read Tolstoi Marx DH Lawrence
2001 I am the last novelist for a long time now.
The Green Light at the End of the Dock (How much I spent):
Hardcover Text - $12.99 from eBay
Connect With Me!
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In 1950, Scottie donated these materials to the Princeton University Library, the university where Fitzgerald once attended classes (although he never graduated).
Many of these materials have been digitized and can delight viewers online for free!
Yes, you can even see the original version of The Great Gatsby!
However, there are a few materials that haven’t been digitized that have been rolling around in my mind ever since. Given my literary ambitions, I am being extremely understated. There are three items in the collection that I *NEED* to see:
1) Progress in 100 Best Books
2) Reading List
3) Revised List of 40 Books
When I purchased The Notebooks of F. Scott Fitzgerald, I was hoping and praying that these three items would be included.
Sadly, no dice. Not that I need any encouragement to visit a library and I am not one easily discouraged…..perhaps I shall set up a Kickstarter?
So what exactly is included?
2,078 notes.
They all aren’t brilliant, but there are some real winners.
Here are a few of my favorites:
23 Egyptian Proverb: The worst things:
To be in bed and sleep not,
To want for one who comes not,
To try to please and please not.
68 This is a tough girl and I’m taking her to tough place.
74 Feel wide awake – no but at least I feel born, which is more than I did the first time I woke up.
76 In utter weariness, he asked her once in different words, “then where do you go from here—where do you turn?”
“Toward life,” she said “Toward life,” and turned toward him.
85 I like writers. If you speak to a writer you often get an answer.
316 Show me a hero and I will write you a tragedy.
330 You don’t write because you want to say something; you write because you’ve got something to say.
746 Two middle-aged well dressed men meet on bridge where each intends suicide. They exchange stories. One has succeeded too late after terrible struggles, loss of girls, etc. The other begins with great dreams, hint frustration, etc. But surprise end is, “No, I got it.” (Please someone write this book!)
1278 If you’re strong enough there are no precedents.
1947 Advice to young writers—Read Tolstoi, Marx and DH Lawrence and then read Tolstoi Marx DH Lawrence
2001 I am the last novelist for a long time now.
The Green Light at the End of the Dock (How much I spent):
Hardcover Text - $12.99 from eBay
Connect With Me!
Blog Twitter BookTube Facebook Insta
January 4, 2013
This book, my first introduction to Fitzgerald, literally changed my life when I read it for the first time (at the urging of my wonderful 10th-grade English teacher). A fascinating look at a brilliant writer's mind and creative process.
November 26, 2016
An interesting book to flip through to get a glimpse into the writing mind of F Scott Fitzgerald.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews