The Amazing Story of Benjamin Button. Short Stories

The collection includes nineteen stories by the famous American writer Francis Scott Fitzgerald from three cycles: «Flappers and Philosophers», «Tales of the Jazz Age», and «Oh, This Insufferable Youth». All texts are presented in translations by S. Yu. Afonykin. At the end of the book, the dates of publication of the stories in American magazines, the names of these magazines, as well as the American artists who created illustrations for the stories, are indicated.
These drawings by twelve different masters in the book allow us to view Fitzgerald's heroes through the eyes of their contemporaries.

The period in American history from the end of World War I to the beginning of the Great Depression is referred to as the Jazz Age. This term was introduced into circulation by Francis Scott Fitzgerald. In his stories, published in American magazines in the first quarter of the 20th century, the atmosphere of that time is conveyed brilliantly. Fitzgerald mainly wrote about Americans who considered themselves the «elite of society». He secretly aspired to belong to them himself. Francis was born in 1896 to a family of Irish immigrants. His relatives paid for his education at Princeton University. There, the young man began to dream of literary fame, for he undoubtedly had the makings of a writer. However, Francis never became one of the «golden youth». His Irish origin and modest financial status hindered him. Later, Fitzgerald recalled that it was at this time that he developed a «hostility towards the class of idle people». In his stories, young people often are precisely such wealthy idlers.

The prototype of many young heroines in the writer's works was the beautiful Zelda. She was the daughter of a judge and was considered one of the most desirable brides in Alabama. The girl's family was against her marriage to an Irishman who was unable to provide a comfortable existence for his future wife. The lovestruck Fitzgerald decided that his only trump card could be triumph in literature. He moved to New York, got a job at an advertising agency, and began writing stories. At first, things went poorly – manuscripts were returned. The first success came only in 1920 after the publication of the novel «This Side of Paradise». Fitzgerald's works started to be published, and he married his Zelda. In a sense, Fitzgerald became one of the heroes of his novels. He bought a mansion in Manhattan and began to regularly appear with his wife at all the iconic parties of the «Big Apple». Although, of course, he was not an idle bon vivant – maintaining such a lifestyle was only possible for him through hard work as a writer. This life, seemingly so attractive on the outside, also had its downside. The couple often quarreled, jealous Zelda would throw scandals at her husband, and he drowned his sorrows in alcohol. A trip to Europe helped him escape the endless hustle and bustle of New York. It was there, in Paris, that Fitzgerald finished writing «The Great Gatsby» – a novel that became a masterpiece of American literature of the «jazz age». The atmosphere of that time is well conveyed by the illustrations in this book. They are created by a whole slew of American artists who illustrated Fitzgerald's stories in the 1920s.