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A review by zosia_rose
The Autograph Man by Zadie Smith
emotional
informative
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
DNF
I made it farther than I normally would have read strictly because I really wanted to honor Zadie Smith’s writing, but goLLY was this boring.
Maybe slice-of-life fiction just isn’t my genre, because I guarantee I would read any fantasy piece Smith were to write. Her storytelling and verbiage is beautiful and she writes characters very well, honoring their distinct personalities. Unfortunately, this life was not meant to be sliced...although interesting to a point there’s only so much mundanity I can take (no matter how prettily written) before it becomes TV static.
I’m trying my best to be respectful of culture here, but Judaism was the main theme woven into every section of the story and even the unique structure of the book and the passionate characters couldn’t keep me invested enough in the multiple arguments and nuanced philosophies about this topic to finish reading.
¡TAKE MY RATING WITH A GRAIN OF SALT!
I often push myself to finish books even if they’re not my favorite out of respect for the time put in by everyone involved in writing/publishing something. Recently I have changed my perspective: take what I can and leave the enjoyment to those it was meant for. Those are the reviews you should trust. The above is simply my personal record so I can better filter my TBR and find books I’ll like upon opening them.
I made it farther than I normally would have read strictly because I really wanted to honor Zadie Smith’s writing, but goLLY was this boring.
Maybe slice-of-life fiction just isn’t my genre, because I guarantee I would read any fantasy piece Smith were to write. Her storytelling and verbiage is beautiful and she writes characters very well, honoring their distinct personalities. Unfortunately, this life was not meant to be sliced...although interesting to a point there’s only so much mundanity I can take (no matter how prettily written) before it becomes TV static.
I’m trying my best to be respectful of culture here, but Judaism was the main theme woven into every section of the story and even the unique structure of the book and the passionate characters couldn’t keep me invested enough in the multiple arguments and nuanced philosophies about this topic to finish reading.
¡TAKE MY RATING WITH A GRAIN OF SALT!
I often push myself to finish books even if they’re not my favorite out of respect for the time put in by everyone involved in writing/publishing something. Recently I have changed my perspective: take what I can and leave the enjoyment to those it was meant for. Those are the reviews you should trust. The above is simply my personal record so I can better filter my TBR and find books I’ll like upon opening them.