Tender is the Night

A couple months ago my friend Megan and I were in Barnes & Nobles. In particular, we were perusing over novels and works by famous and acclaimed authors. When I picked up a complication of Herman Melville’s other works aside from Moby Dick, Megan said, “You know, I wonder if the specific book we know and study by an author is the one that the author actually thought was his or her best work.” I thought that to be a really interesting point. Like, what if Herman Melville thought Moby Dick stunk, or Lewis Caroll thought he wrote much better novels than Alice in Wonderland? What were the favorite books each respective author has written and is each the same as the one we revere so much?
Lo, I’m currently reading Tender is the Night by, and its funny I even have to say his name, F. Scott Fitzgerald. Everyone knows The Great Gatsby, and most know This Side of Paradise, but neither one according to his testimony was his greatest work. Not even close. Fitzgerald thought Tender is the Night was by far, the best novel he had written. However, as it’s strikingly evident was not as well received by the media and critics alike. Most said it wasn’t very good and it steady declined in sales after selling only 12,000 copies in the first couple months after its release, tapering off to nothing. For that reason, the book is generally unknown to the public eye.
I found this so intriguing but also somewhat dismaying. I guess the concept is just plain weird, but finding an example that exactly corresponded with that conversation I felt obligated to elaborate on it and share my findings.