When Zadie Smith published her very first novel, The Washington Post hailed her as "a postmodern Charles Dickens" What an enormous pair of shoes Smith had to fill!
Now the name Charles Dickens, much like the maligned Shakespeare, may fill you with horror and dread (depending on your English teacher, I presume!) but, whatever your reaction, it is a fact, cast in concrete, that both of these men were damn fine story tellers. Their characters are rich, complex and totally fascinating; their plots carrying you along in a whirlwind of see-saw emotions, more often than not, sprinkled with a liberal dash of heartening comedy. In addition, both Dickens and Shakespeare have left behind tales tightly entangled in our history, culture and heritage dynamic glances into a world that is simultaneously foreign and yet all too familiar. Two great writers to cherish and reverenow, let me add a third!
In her much-admired novel, "White Teeth" Zadie Smith, like Dickens, summons you to North London: a much more modern place but still one where cultures mingle and merge with whirlwind energy. The result is an amazing insight into an almost unique microcosm, portrayed expertly with incomparable realism by this great novelist of our time.
Archie Jones tries, but fails, to kill himselfso the novel starts, as shocking as any Dickens invented. Archie's failure in this instant is by no means his first but he lives on and tries again. His second attempt intimately invites you into his second chance at life: a beautiful Jamaican bride and the birth of his daughter, Irie.
Samad Iqbal is a Muslim whose arranged marriage results in two polar-opposite twins, Magid and Millat. Together with their gutsy mother, Alsana, they introduce even more thought-provoking strata's to this novel involving gender, heritage, history and status. It is a brilliantly realistic view of the hodgepodge of folk who have come to make London the cosmopolitan, creative, cross-cultural hub we know and must come to love. The characters are cherished by Smith and she invites you to share their lives without sugar coating but with a fair few belly laughs.
"White Teeth" (and the joy of Zadie Smith's subsequent novels) is not an option: it will make you proud to be British.
A great way to keep on top of what is popular in the novel stakes is to join a book-club near you. I regularly attend Home House's monthly book-club, which is where I got the inspiration to write about White Teeth. I'm already looking forward to May's book, which will be Oscar & Lucinda by Peter Carey.
Now the name Charles Dickens, much like the maligned Shakespeare, may fill you with horror and dread (depending on your English teacher, I presume!) but, whatever your reaction, it is a fact, cast in concrete, that both of these men were damn fine story tellers. Their characters are rich, complex and totally fascinating; their plots carrying you along in a whirlwind of see-saw emotions, more often than not, sprinkled with a liberal dash of heartening comedy. In addition, both Dickens and Shakespeare have left behind tales tightly entangled in our history, culture and heritage dynamic glances into a world that is simultaneously foreign and yet all too familiar. Two great writers to cherish and reverenow, let me add a third!
In her much-admired novel, "White Teeth" Zadie Smith, like Dickens, summons you to North London: a much more modern place but still one where cultures mingle and merge with whirlwind energy. The result is an amazing insight into an almost unique microcosm, portrayed expertly with incomparable realism by this great novelist of our time.
Archie Jones tries, but fails, to kill himselfso the novel starts, as shocking as any Dickens invented. Archie's failure in this instant is by no means his first but he lives on and tries again. His second attempt intimately invites you into his second chance at life: a beautiful Jamaican bride and the birth of his daughter, Irie.
Samad Iqbal is a Muslim whose arranged marriage results in two polar-opposite twins, Magid and Millat. Together with their gutsy mother, Alsana, they introduce even more thought-provoking strata's to this novel involving gender, heritage, history and status. It is a brilliantly realistic view of the hodgepodge of folk who have come to make London the cosmopolitan, creative, cross-cultural hub we know and must come to love. The characters are cherished by Smith and she invites you to share their lives without sugar coating but with a fair few belly laughs.
"White Teeth" (and the joy of Zadie Smith's subsequent novels) is not an option: it will make you proud to be British.
A great way to keep on top of what is popular in the novel stakes is to join a book-club near you. I regularly attend Home House's monthly book-club, which is where I got the inspiration to write about White Teeth. I'm already looking forward to May's book, which will be Oscar & Lucinda by Peter Carey.
About the Author:
The city is home to many, but Home House is a different kind of private members club in London. It's 'home' to people from all walks of life, and the perfect hangout for a working day and a buzzing social hotspot come nighttime. Among its many other private events, this month Home House is hosting London's most exclusive Book Club.
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