Book Haunting

I'm being chased.  It started about two weeks ago when I was looking at the Book Madness brackets and my beloved 1984 was getting trounced. The book doing the trouncing was The Great Gatsby.  I have taught Gatsby several times, and I love it, too, but well...put almost anything other than P&P up against 1984 and....

It got me thinking about Gatsby, though, and the cover art by Francis Cugat was much on the website.  I decided that on payday, I'd splurge and get the shirt since Out of Print finally released the original Cugat cover on a beautiful blue shirt, just like the original dust jacket.  I ordered it from San Francisco.  Keep track now, because these are instances of Gatsby numbers one, two, and three....

Sometime around in here, I had a strange dream about Gatsby.  I don't remember the details.  I just know that I woke up thinking, "Huh.  Can't wait for my shirt to get here.  Weird.  Maybe I need to reread that book."  I probably, to be perfectly honest, also thought something about Robert Redford in the movie version, too, because, well, COME ON...does any woman worth her salt really think about Gatsby and not think about Robert Redford?  (I mean REALLY?  He's all pretty...and...and...shiny....and...and...)

Then, last night, I had a interesting conversation with somebody that wound up headed down a literary alley and...voila...Gatsby was there again.  I sort of felt startled when I saw it come up, but then I just shrugged and went with it.  By now, I was sort of getting used to seeing it here, there, and everywhere, lounging idly against the hood of expensive vehicles and on street corners, insouciant and knowing grin in place.

Today, one of my students was turning in some work when another came in holding a paperback copy of the novel.  The second student wanted to give it to the first, as it had the first's name in it.  The first was bemused, saying she hadn't seen that book in over a year, hadn't brought it to school at all, didn't even know where it was until it turned up in the second student's hand.  I simply nodded and thought, "Okay, well, now it's actually coming AFTER ME in print..."

I've never been haunted and pursued by a novel before.  It's a little disconcerting.  I guess after I finish what I'm reading now I'll reread Gatsby.  I'm afraid that if I don't the next stage will be looking out my window to see a green light has appeared at the end of my pasture or having somebody start calling me "old sport" for a nickname.  That would be more than a little too much, I think.  I hope it can be patient until I finish this book I have going.  Otherwise, I guess I better look for big yellow cars as I cross the street....