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A review by books_baking_brews
Autumn by Ali Smith
5.0
Woo boy. This reminds me of one of those books you dissect in class unfolding all the moments and meanings. Set against the backdrop of political unrest post-Brexit, this book circles around Danial and Elisabeth, who are the friend loves of each others lives. "The lifelong friends, he said. We sometimes wait a lifetime to meet them." We first meet the pair when Elisabeth is eight and Daniel, 77. The novels jumps from past to present, where Daniel now 101 is in a home on the edge of life and death and Elisabeth, now 32, comes and reads to him. There are so many things to unpack in these 260 pages, I actually want to reread this. No one writes like Smith and her prose is just so relevant.
Listen to this: "I'm tired of the news. I'm tired of the way it makes things spectacular that aren't, and deals so simplistically with what truly appalling. I'm tired of the vitriol. I'm tired of the anger. I'm tired of the selfishness. I'm tired of how we're doing nothing to stop it. I'm tired of how we're encouraging it. I'm tried of the violence there is and I'm tired of the violence that's coming, that hasn't happened yet. I'm tired of the liars. I'm tired of the sanctified liars. I'm tired of how those liars have let this happen. I'm tired of having to wonder whether they did it out of stupidity or did it on purpose. I'm tired of lying governments. I'm tired of people not caring whether they're being lied to any more. I'm tired of being made to fell this fearful." I can't wait to read the next in her seasonal quartet; Winter is coming. (Shoulders, I had to.)
Listen to this: "I'm tired of the news. I'm tired of the way it makes things spectacular that aren't, and deals so simplistically with what truly appalling. I'm tired of the vitriol. I'm tired of the anger. I'm tired of the selfishness. I'm tired of how we're doing nothing to stop it. I'm tired of how we're encouraging it. I'm tried of the violence there is and I'm tired of the violence that's coming, that hasn't happened yet. I'm tired of the liars. I'm tired of the sanctified liars. I'm tired of how those liars have let this happen. I'm tired of having to wonder whether they did it out of stupidity or did it on purpose. I'm tired of lying governments. I'm tired of people not caring whether they're being lied to any more. I'm tired of being made to fell this fearful." I can't wait to read the next in her seasonal quartet; Winter is coming. (Shoulders, I had to.)