The Autograph Man

THE AUTOGRAPH MAN

by Zadie Smith

 

Nominations: Booker Longlist 2002, Dublin Longlist 2004, Women’s Prize Finalist 2003

 

Date Read: June 1, 2023

 

I have been so excited to read this novel and it being my first foray into Zadie Smith’s work, a double excitement. I was so disappointed. While I can see the draw for many readers and critics alike, this just wasn’t my cup of tea. The prologue was incredibly promising and I was drawn in by Smith’s witty insights, nuanced understanding of juvenile love/hate and a tolerant father hell-bent on having these boys enjoy the day, knowing this will be an indelible memory for them.

 

The remainder, however, when readers fast-forward to the late twenties in these boys’ lives, but most notably from Alex-Li’s point of view, I felt the entire remainder was tedious, wandering and (dare I say it?) pointless. Alex lost his father on that indelible day from his childhood and also met another boy, Joseph, who would have a profound impact on Alex’s life, most notably in friendship and in Alex’s vocation as Autograph Man.

 

The four boys in attendance on that day – Alex, Rubinstein, Adam and Joseph – remain friends in the present time and are all trying to steer Alex onto a better path. Alex struggles with alcohol addiction, remaining true to his long-term girlfriend Esther, is obsessed with the has-been actress Kitty and is having a crisis of his Jewish faith. The most compelling of all these challenges is the faith portion as I am always drawn in by religion and have a special place in my heart for Judaism, although I’m not Jewish.

 

Things I did appreciate: Smith’s consistent use of the “international gesture for” mechanism, which did evoke the desired visualization. The ease with which Alex and Kitty get along after having known each other for such a short time. The time the vertically challenged rabbi took with Alex to discuss the Kaddish. 

 

Nevertheless, this took me so incredibly long to read because I just didn’t care in the end. Now I’m a little shell-shocked and reticent to read the other Smith on my list but crossing my fingers and forging ahead nonetheless.

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Gentleman In Moscow

Image
A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW by Amor Towles   Nominations: Dublin Longlist 2018, Goodreads Finalist 2016, Kirkus Finalist 2016   Date Read: February 24, 2017   From Kirkus Reviews:   “Sentenced to house arrest in Moscow's Metropol Hotel by a Bolshevik tribunal for writing a poem deemed to encourage revolt, Count Alexander Rostov nonetheless lives the fullest of lives, discovering the depths of his humanity.   Inside the elegant Metropol, located near the Kremlin and the Bolshoi, the Count slowly adjusts to circumstances as a "Former Person." He makes do with the attic room, to which he is banished after residing for years in a posh third-floor suite. A man of refined taste in wine, food, and literature, he strives to maintain a daily routine, exploring the nooks and crannies of the hotel, bonding with staff, accepting the advances of attractive women, and forming what proves to be a deeply meaningful relationship with a spirited young girl, Nina. "We are bound to find comfo
Read more

An Island

Image
AN ISLAND by Karen Jennings   Nomination: Booker Longlist 2021   Date Read: December 10, 2022   A short but mighty novel, An Island explores the concept of home, family, identity, the impact of political upheaval and the immigrant experience, when one’s suffering is so intense they move from one shitty country to the next. Samuel has finally found a peaceful home on an island somewhere off the coast of Africa. He was hired as a lighthouse keeper and after a tumultuous life, most of which was spent in prison as a political prisoner, he has carved out a life for himself on this island, enjoying a tranquil existence that basks in the quiet tasks of daily living.   Only after exploring Samuel’s life does the reader understand why such an isolated, spare and lonely existence satisfy him, with no desire to escape but only to grow deeper roots. His life witnessed the end of the British occupation, the installation of a brutal dictator and yet another dictator after the first was poisoned. Sam
Read more

The Changeling

Image
THE CHANGELING by Victor LaValle   Nominations: Dublin Longlist 2019, LA Times Finalist 2017, PEN/Jean Stein Finalist 2018   Date Read: July 21, 2024   From Kirkus Reviews: “A  tragedy thrusts a mourning father into peculiar, otherworldly corners of New York City. When Apollo and Emma have their baby, Brian, it feels like both reward and challenge for the new dad. Apollo, the son of a single mother, had been scraping by as a bookseller who hunts estate and garage sales for rare first editions, so even the unusual circumstance of Brian's birth (in a stalled subway train) seems like a blessing, as does the way Apollo stumbles across a first edition of  To Kill a Mockingbird  (inscribed by Harper Lee to Truman Capote, no less) shortly after. But after some young-parent squabbles and inexplicable images on their smartphones foreshadow trouble, the story turns nightmarish: Apollo finds himself tied up and beaten by Emma, then forced to listen to the sounds of Brian’s murder. LaValle has
Read more