West of Sunset

In 1937, F. Scott Fitzgerald was a troubled, uncertain man whose literary success was long behind him. In poor health, with his wife consigned to a mental asylum and his finances in ruin, he struggled to make a new start as a screenwriter in Hollywood.

With flashbacks to key moments from Fitzgerald's past, the story follows him as he arrives on the MGM lot, falls in love with brassy gossip columnist Sheilah Graham, begins work on The Last Tycoon, and tries to maintain a semblance of family life with the absent Zelda and their daughter, Scottie.

Written with striking grace and subtlety, this wise and intimate portrait of a man trying his best to hold together a world that's flying apart, if not gone already, is an American masterpiece.



Stewart O'Nan is the author of fourteen previous novels, including

The Odds;

Emily, Alone;

A Prayer for the Dying; and

Snow Angels, as well as several works of nonfiction, including, with Stephen King, the bestselling

Faithful. His novel

Last Night at the Lobster was a US bestseller and finalist for the

Los Angeles Times Book Prize. He was born and raised in Pittsburgh where he lives with his family.



O'Nan's adroitness with atmosphere and period detail makes Fitzgerald's dreams of creating worthy work, even with his best days behind him, absorbing and poignant.



O'Nan... skilfully pulls us into Fitzgerald's gilded and yet familiar world. He brings the Hollywood legends to life. By the end, they feel like friends.



With

West of Sunset, one brilliant American novelist has taken on another... big-hearted and fascinating.



[He] brings depth and tenderness to the awkward love affair between Fitzgerald and the gossip columnist Sheilah Graham.



One of the most purely enjoyable novels of the year.



The heart of the novel is his penetrating description of Fitzgerald's troubled self.



O'Nan is serious in his attempt to dig deep into Fitzgerald and his genius... Scott's pain is palpable but O'Nan's prose glitters in response.



Some of O'Nan's most suggestive passages conjure the feeling of freefall that can accompany uncontrollable change.



O'Nan has written a wonderfully intimate and gently absorbing book.



Atmospheric

West of Sunset re-imagines the last three troubled years of Fitzgerald's life... Stunning.



A stunning account of F. Scott Fitzgerald's final years.



[A] gorgeous new novel... O'Nan is a writer alert to the courage and beauty inherent in the stories of people who simply have to keep on keeping on.



Mesmerising and haunting...The strings O'Nan pulls so deftly are really the mark of a consummate pro, along the lines of Fitzgerald himself.



West of Sunset focuses on these last, darkly difficult years, folding in details of Fitzgerald's life with subtle, unhurried sympathy. The result is a fine portrait of grace under pressure and moral courage.



I'm a total junkie for anything to do with The Fitzgeralds, and this is a great addition for any fangirl. But, outside of that, O'Nan has a gorgeous style, resulting in a story that is as beautiful as it is heartbreakingly sad.