And now for something entirely different: Ms. Smith has written a fantastic novel of historical fiction. The central character, Mrs. Eliza Touchet, is an acid-tongued spinster with abolitionist views, who moves in with her cousin in the 1840s, the hapless writer William Ainsworth, and lives with him for the next 30 years. England is captivated by the Tichborne Affair, in which Arthur Orton, a lower-class butcher from Australia, claims to be Sir Roger Tichborne and thus heir to a sizable estate (ant title). His outrageous claim results in two lengthy trials where a Black Jamaican, Andre Bogle, supports the claim. What is truth in a world of hypocrisy and self-deception? Overall, the writing is rich and detailed, a joy to read.
Tag: Zadie Smith
Feel free – Zadie Smith
Ms. Smith writes superb novels (most recently, Swing Time) but this book is a collection of essays, reviews of books and music, and other writings. She writes with a refreshingly candid and breezy style about art, music, books and social justice issues. She is self-deprecating, describing her and her friends: “we stood around pointlessly, like the Luddite fiscally ignorant liberals we are, complaining about the inevitable”. There are enchanting digressions in the essays like a description of an epiphany regarding Joni Mitchell music while in Tintern Abbey which eventually segues into a discussion of Kierkegaard! Given the diversity of topics, some essays inevitably are less engaging but collectively this is a must-read book for ZS fans.
Swing Time – Zadie Smith
An un-named narrator tells a story that alternates between two times: childhood in NW London in the 1980s, and adulthood in the 2000s. All the important relationships in the narrator’s life are with women: her mother, her friend Tracey, and her employer Aimee, a Madonna-like rock star. A sub-plot in Africa is especially rewarding. Smith’s prose is insightful, she is an acute observer of the narrator’s world. This is sensational writing, the best of Smith’s books so far.
What David Read 