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Gatsby: Death of an Irishman
On the French Riviera in 1924, twenty-seven year-old Scott Fitzgerald struggles to breathe life into Jay Gatsby, the protagonist of his new novel. Eager to be viewed as a serious writer, more than the philosopher of the flapper, he wants to create ‘something extraordinary and beautiful and simple and intricately patterned.’
Not only is his artistic reputation on the line, he is in a precarious financial position; near broke and living off advances received from his publisher. Scott’s struggle with the novel echoes his troubled life and fraught relationship with his Irish identity; justifying the self-invention of Midwest farm boy Jimmy Gatz into the nouveau riche Jay Gatsby, he writes, ‘what better right does a man possess than to invent his own antecedents?’
A dramatic, evocative and vivid narrative of the early life of F. Scott Fitzgerald, his search for identity in an evolving America and how he uses that journey to bring his most iconic character to life, climaxing with the revelatory Plaza Hotel confrontation: He looked – and this is said in all contempt for the babbled slander of his garden – as if he had “killed a man.”
Not only is his artistic reputation on the line, he is in a precarious financial position; near broke and living off advances received from his publisher. Scott’s struggle with the novel echoes his troubled life and fraught relationship with his Irish identity; justifying the self-invention of Midwest farm boy Jimmy Gatz into the nouveau riche Jay Gatsby, he writes, ‘what better right does a man possess than to invent his own antecedents?’
A dramatic, evocative and vivid narrative of the early life of F. Scott Fitzgerald, his search for identity in an evolving America and how he uses that journey to bring his most iconic character to life, climaxing with the revelatory Plaza Hotel confrontation: He looked – and this is said in all contempt for the babbled slander of his garden – as if he had “killed a man.”
220 pages, Paperback
Published March 1, 2025
2 people want to read
About the author
Patrick O'Sullivan Greene
5 books2 followersPatrick’s third book, Gatsby – Death of an Irishman, is out! A new take on F. Scott Fitzgerald and his search for identity in the centennial of The Great Gatsby.
He published his first book, Crowdfunding the Revolution: The First Dáil Loan and the Battle for Irish Independence, in 2020.
Critically well-received, the book was reviewed by Paschal Donohoe, Irish Minister for Finance, in History Ireland:
“The quality of writing and the pace of storytelling ensure that this is not a niche or specialist work of history. This is a compelling read. I wish I had written it myself”.
Patrick was invited to make a courtesy visit to present the book to President Michael D. Higgins.
His second book, Revolution at the Waldorf: America and the Irish War of Independence, was launched in Ireland in December 2022, and released in the United States in April 2023.
Patrick has written articles for the Irish Times, been interviewed for national media and has been a guest on leading history and economic podcasts. He has presented at the Dublin Book Festival, the American Irish Historical Society in New York, the Princess Grace Irish Library in Monaco, and at the national conference of the American Conference for Irish Studies.
Patrick has worked in business for most of his career and is back in his native Killarney after spells in Dublin, London, New York and France.
He published his first book, Crowdfunding the Revolution: The First Dáil Loan and the Battle for Irish Independence, in 2020.
Critically well-received, the book was reviewed by Paschal Donohoe, Irish Minister for Finance, in History Ireland:
“The quality of writing and the pace of storytelling ensure that this is not a niche or specialist work of history. This is a compelling read. I wish I had written it myself”.
Patrick was invited to make a courtesy visit to present the book to President Michael D. Higgins.
His second book, Revolution at the Waldorf: America and the Irish War of Independence, was launched in Ireland in December 2022, and released in the United States in April 2023.
Patrick has written articles for the Irish Times, been interviewed for national media and has been a guest on leading history and economic podcasts. He has presented at the Dublin Book Festival, the American Irish Historical Society in New York, the Princess Grace Irish Library in Monaco, and at the national conference of the American Conference for Irish Studies.
Patrick has worked in business for most of his career and is back in his native Killarney after spells in Dublin, London, New York and France.
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