A reading guide
Books like The Great Gatsby
These classic novels offer stories of wealth, longing and social ambition for readers seeking books like The Great Gatsby. Start with The Beautiful and Damned, where a couple builds a life around parties and an expected fortune.
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Where to start
Start hereThe Beautiful and DamnedF. Scott FitzgeraldStart with parties, dinners and an expected inheritance as Anthony and Gloria build a marriage around pleasure and anticipated wealth.
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Another way inThe House of MirthEdith WhartonFollow Lily Bart's search for security among wealthy friends, with the tension of wanting a rich marriage while questioning its compromises.
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Or tryThe TouchstoneEdith WhartonChoose this intimate story of a lawyer whose wish to marry leads him to sell private letters and face his conscience.
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The books
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| # | First published | Book | Kind | Read |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1922 | The Beautiful and DamnedF. Scott Fitzgerald A couple builds its life around parties and pleasure while spending beyond its means and waiting for an inheritance. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 2 | 1905 | The House of MirthEdith Wharton Dependent on wealthy friends, Lily Bart seeks a rich husband while hesitating over the compromises needed to preserve her social place. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 3 | 1913 | The Custom of the CountryEdith Wharton Undine Spragg pursues fashionable society through marriage, seeking the admiration, clothes and connections that might secure her desired position. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 4 | 1920 | The Age of InnocenceEdith Wharton An engaged New York lawyer falls for his fiancée's cousin, bringing his desires into conflict with society's expectations. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 5 | 1920 | This Side of ParadiseF. Scott Fitzgerald Raised to expect distinction, Amory Blaine pursues love, social standing and ideas without finding a clear purpose. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 6 | 1922 | The Glimpses of the MoonEdith Wharton A couple relies on wealthy friends and agrees to separate for richer partners, putting affection at odds with financial hopes. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 7 | 1918 | The Magnificent AmbersonsBooth Tarkington A young man expects inherited wealth and standing to grant him authority as his family's town becomes a city. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 8 | 1921 | Alice AdamsBooth Tarkington Eager to enter wealthy society, Alice Adams conceals her family's poverty and the gap between her circumstances and hopes. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 9 | 1885 | The Rise of Silas LaphamWilliam Dean Howells A successful paint maker discovers that a fortune cannot secure his family's easy acceptance into Boston society. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 10 | 1900 | Sister Carrie: A NovelTheodore Dreiser A young woman moves to Chicago seeking work and comfort, while relationships offer access to pleasures her wages cannot provide. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 11 | 1911 | Jennie GerhardtTheodore Dreiser A poor woman's relationships bring her close to wealth while exposing the barriers of class and respectability. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 12 | 1912 | The Financier: A NovelTheodore Dreiser A Philadelphia financier builds a fortune through financial skill, entering a network of bankers, contractors and political bosses. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 13 | 1900 | The TouchstoneEdith Wharton A lawyer seeking money for marriage sells a deceased writer's private letters and struggles with his conscience. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
| 14 | 1899 | McTeague: A Story of San FranciscoFrank Norris A San Francisco dentist's marriage unravels as his wife's lottery winnings become a source of greed and conflict. | Novel | Free to startRead free |
Questions
What are the best books like The Great Gatsby?
Start with The Beautiful and Damned, The House of Mirth and The Custom of the Country. They offer different routes into wealth and social aspiration: a couple awaiting an inheritance, a woman dependent on rich friends, and an ambitious newcomer using marriage to pursue status.
Which book is closest to The Great Gatsby?
For parties, anticipated wealth and a life built around pleasure, choose The Beautiful and Damned. Anthony Patch expects his grandfather's fortune and sees little reason to work, while his marriage to Gloria centres on parties, drinking, dinners and travel.
Where should I start after The Great Gatsby?
Start with The Beautiful and Damned if parties and the expectation of wealth draw you in. Choose The House of Mirth for the pressures of New York high society, or The Touchstone for a more intimate story about money, marriage and conscience.
Are there shorter books like The Great Gatsby?
The Touchstone is a short choice, at about 3 hours. Its central dilemma brings money and love together: Stephen Glennard wants to marry but cannot afford the life he imagines, and he possesses private letters from a deceased writer who loved him.
What do books like The Great Gatsby have in common?
The selections here connect money and social standing with love, ambition or conscience. In The House of Mirth, marriage offers financial security at a personal cost; in Alice Adams, a young woman conceals her poverty to enter wealthy society. The Glimpses of the Moon puts affection against the prospect of richer partners.
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