The Great Disillusionment of Nick and Jay
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- £6.99
Publisher Description
“Douglass sets a classic on fire with an inspired recasting that strips away time and all expectations." — Rita Williams-Garcia, New York Times bestselling author of A Sitting in St. James
From New York Times bestselling author Ryan Douglass comes a gripping and tender reimagining of The Great Gatsby about the pursuit of happiness—and love—in a society built on cruelty and secrets.
Seventeen-year-old Nick Carrington wants nothing more than to leave Greenwood, Oklahoma, behind and make a name for himself in the papers. But when tragedy strikes, dreams turn into a twisted reality. Forced to start anew in Harlem, only a letter of acceptance from the prestigious West Egg Academy is able to pull him back into the world.
But the supposedly integrated private boys’ school is more of a catchy headline than a fact, with the same prejudices Nick left behind back home. And his secret but growing feelings for the founder’s wickedly charismatic son, Jay Gatsby Jr.— who dances past society’s conventions with practiced ease—only add more complications.
When Nick’s cutting pen exposes dangerous truths about West Egg and leads to perilous consequences, he and Jay must decide whether to spend a lifetime outrunning trouble or be the ones to light the match. Can they not only fight back but triumph? Or will the powers that be win yet again?
The Great Gatsby Romance You Deserved: Subtext takes center stage in this slow-burn reimagining where Nick and Jay finally get their shot. Rewrite the American Dream: In a world where the scales are never balanced, falling for each other might be Nick and Jay’s boldest rebellion yet.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this sharply rendered riff, Douglass (The Taking of Jake Livingston) reimagines The Great Gatsby as a sprawling Harlem Renaissance–set story starring queer Black protagonists. After narrowly escaping the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921, Nick Carrington follows his cousin, Daisy, to West Egg, a seemingly progressive, integrated academy in New York City. Instead of allowing him to pursue his journalistic aspirations, though, the principal, who is Black, informs Nick that he'll train as an elevator operator. Nick soon finds himself butting heads with pompous, white West Egg Chronicle editor Charlie Buchanan and enamored with charismatic "Mulatto" student Jay Gatsby Jr., both sons of West Egg's wealthy cofounders. Simultaneously, Nick self-publishes scathingly honest op-eds that confront prejudice, slowly growing into "someone bigger than I'd ever dared to dream of." But as Nick wrestles with Jay's unpredictable affections and suspicions about the Gatsby family's wealth, it seems the only way to instigate real change is to break the law and risk his own heart. Though some uneven characterization mars this creative retelling, thought-provoking social commentary effectively centers issues of race, class, and identity. Ages 13–up.
