The Great Gatsby takes place in West Egg, a fictional town on Long Island. The book explores "The Jazz Age" as well as the Roaring Twenties, as it takes place in the 1920's. The Valley of Ashes, the antithesis of life in East and West Egg, the Valley consists of smoky air and piles of ashes. “Wilson’s Garage”, in the Valley of Ashes, is another key place.