Zadie Smith

Much conversation has been going on here at A Book A Week, in the comments, in emails, and on other blogs about Zadie Smith. Dovegreyreader, a British blogger, points out that the British press is having a love-fest with Smith right now, where it’s bad form to say that you don’t like her books. Last week’s Guardian published a two part essay by Smith where she instructs us readers about our responsibilities, and hints darkly that if we don’t like a certain book, it’s because we lack “talent” as readers. I tried to follow her whole argument, just as I have tried to read her fiction, but I dozed off. Does the love-fest extend to denying this woman an editor who might have said something along the lines of “this is a bit long, dear, and a bit whiney.”

Dovegreyreader challenges an ordinary reader (not a critic) to step forward and claim affection for On Beauty or White Teeth. I know that Nonanon has already done this in the comments to my original post; does anyone want to join her?