# The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

24 Hacker News commenters recommended The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and 9 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 6 of 13 months. It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** Praised for beautiful prose, a tight plot and layered commentary on 1920s America; short enough for class. Critics find the characters shallow and the story dull.

## Why people recommend it

- Engages with American society and identity (4 comments): "he's a superlative writer who (like every high schooler in the country knows) explicitly and directly engaged with the meaning of America" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48927487)) "showed us that the 1920s in America was a highly divided society that was corrupted by materialism" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48975347)) "showed us that the 1920s in America was a highly divided society" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48973958))
- Beautiful, layered prose (3 comments): "It's a great and quick read. A really tight plot and good prose." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46488784)) "the book was beautifully written. It was a joy to read" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46490611)) "The prose is beautiful and satisfyingly layered." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46484840))
- Rich meanings that reward rereading (3 comments): "what this novel expresses: what happens after success? Money and career cannot solve all problems" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46485754)) "it's the metaphors and deeper meanings which add great depth" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46484748)) "it's a great piece of fiction that invites a lot of readings" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46489746))
- Seen as an American masterpiece (3 comments): "It's now viewed as an American masterpiece that captures the 1920s like few other works." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49627491)) "I think The Great Gatsby is the most logical equivalent to the Iliad and Odyssey." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48975016)) "It compares to Woolf and McCarthy just fine." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46495917))

## What people warn about

- Dull, unlikable, shallow characters (3 comments): "It's a dreary book about miserable, unlikable people when read from the perspective of a 15 year old student." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49380115)) "Gatsby was predictable and dull for me with cardboard characters living dull lives." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49386494)) "a terrible book filled with shallow characters living boring lives" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49381967))
- Tedious and boring to read (3 comments): "it was all so tedious and utterly, utterly boring" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48674809)) "I just don't think it's that good a novel." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46486071)) "I also like D'Annunzio's Il piacere much more than The Great Gatsby" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46486929))
- Hard to appreciate as a teen (2 comments): "I remember hating The Great Gatsby when I was 14 and having to read it critically in school" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49377081)) "How on earth is a 16-year-old in 2025 going to understand what's happening in Gatsby?" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45969415))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://hackerapproved.com/p/crime-and-punishment.md): 39 recommend
- [The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://hackerapproved.com/p/brothers-karamazov.md): 28 recommend
- [Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace](https://hackerapproved.com/p/infinite-jest.md): 26 recommend
- [Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand](https://hackerapproved.com/p/atlas-shrugged.md): 23 recommend
- [Moby-Dick by Herman Melville](https://hackerapproved.com/p/moby-dick.md): 22 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/1953136168?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9781953136169) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald", https://hackerapproved.com/p/great-gatsby/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).