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A Goodreads user asked this question about The Razor’s Edge:
When we read this book in my AP English class there were a lot of comparisons drawn between it and The Great Gatsby. I feel like this book isn't read as much as Gatsby but in some ways it may be even more important then Gatsby. Does anyone agree with me or am I alone on this one?
Steven Kent Maugham doesn't get much love in literary circles. There was a moment during his lifetime that he was considered one of the great literary figures of …moreMaugham doesn't get much love in literary circles. There was a moment during his lifetime that he was considered one of the great literary figures of the twentieth century, but that was based more on popular success.

Of his trio of recognized novels--"Of Human Bondage," "The Razor's Edge" and "The Moon and Six Pence," only "Of Human Bondage" gets any love professorial circles. In those circles, Maugham's popularity is viewed the same way movie critics view Burt Reynolds's cinematic success in the early eighties--something that entertained the masses, but nothing of lasting value.

Interestingly, that was also the feeling many literary people felt about Fitzgerald. Later in life, he moved to California where he wrote movie scripts. He'd show his girlfriend books by Hemingway and others. When she once asked to read one of his books, he went to the local bookstore and discovered that he was out of print.

It's possible that the literary community could rediscover W. Somerset Maugham and he could have the kind of resurgence that Fitzgerald has enjoyed, but when I speak with professors of literature these days, it doesn't seem likely.(less)
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The Razor’s Edge
by W. Somerset Maugham
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