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A review by libbysbookshelf
Summer by Ali Smith
SUMMER by ALI SMITH
This marks the fourth and final book in Smith’s seasonal quartet, and what a quartet it was.
I don’t think I could properly sum up in a caption what these series has done or what it has meant to me. The experience transcends words.
Ali Smith is, without a doubt, one of the greatest writers, dead or alive. She has given us four novels that could be presented as art, or they could be presented as history books of the last four years. She takes us from the Brexit vote, to the pandemic and everything in between. She shows us the beauty of language and compassion and love. She shows us the need to educate ourselves; about science and history and art, to ensure that we don’t let history repeat itself, or worse, kill the planet as well as all the people on it.
Reading this series has felt, at times, like reliving a memory; the details are slightly hazy, but the emotions are strong. I like to think that is exactly what Smith was intending with her subtle reminders of events from previous novels. In a way I’d be intrigued to see the whole series mapped out and see how all the characters intersect (I’m sure someone has made such a thing on line) but, on the other hand, I quite like that it’s all mixed up in my memory.
This marks the fourth and final book in Smith’s seasonal quartet, and what a quartet it was.
I don’t think I could properly sum up in a caption what these series has done or what it has meant to me. The experience transcends words.
Ali Smith is, without a doubt, one of the greatest writers, dead or alive. She has given us four novels that could be presented as art, or they could be presented as history books of the last four years. She takes us from the Brexit vote, to the pandemic and everything in between. She shows us the beauty of language and compassion and love. She shows us the need to educate ourselves; about science and history and art, to ensure that we don’t let history repeat itself, or worse, kill the planet as well as all the people on it.
Reading this series has felt, at times, like reliving a memory; the details are slightly hazy, but the emotions are strong. I like to think that is exactly what Smith was intending with her subtle reminders of events from previous novels. In a way I’d be intrigued to see the whole series mapped out and see how all the characters intersect (I’m sure someone has made such a thing on line) but, on the other hand, I quite like that it’s all mixed up in my memory.