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Loading... The autograph man : a novel (original 2002; edition 2002)by Zadie Smith
Work detailsThe Autograph Man by Zadie Smith (2002)
None. I picked up this book because I had a voucher to use up and the book shop had suggested that Zadie Smith is similar to Margaret Atwood. Well, apart from being female I'm not sure there's any connection, but I did really love this book. On glancing at other reader reviews, I wasn't sure what I was in for--many compared The Autograph Man unfavourably with White Teeth, a book which a good friend didn't like at all, but I loved this from the start. The sense of humour was very much in line with my own and Zadie Smith's observations on life/reality rarely failed to strike a chord. (  ) Vivl | Apr 5, 2013 |  Gave to L as present. Will read at some time. (  ) velvetink | Mar 31, 2013 | Not the same caliber as White Teeth, but by no means dull. Zadie Smith writes in a creative way and is able to put to words thoughts that readers don't realize they ever have until they've read the words for themselves. The plot was interesting, but split in several places. This isn't necessarily a good thing, but in the end it left a few ends not quite finished. I found that I wasn't at all pleased with the ending relating the main character and the movie star he idolizes throughout the book. I felt there should have been more of a conclusion there than what exists. I highly enjoyed the book and its descriptive nature, even with the small disappointments that popped in occasionally. It is easy to see why the book made the Orange Shortlist. ( ) mirrani | Aug 4, 2012 | Let me say at the outset that I am a big fan of Zadie Smith's novels, "On Beauty" and "White Teeth," and I hope she has a long and productive writing career. She writes with humor, compassion, and wit about the melting pot that is cosmopolitan London and how cultures and generations collide. So, with regret, I have to say that "The Autograph Man" is overwritten and tiresomely cryptic. And no wonder; it takes as its structure the Kabbalah of mystic Judaism with dollops of Buddhism and Roman Catholicism on the side. In her other novels, Smith is able to make a tasty casserole out of such varying ingredients, but they don't work here, at least not to a white, Catholic American like me. Read the rest at my blog: http://thegrimreader.blogspot.com/2012/06/i-follow-autograph-hound.html (  ) nohrt4me2 | Jun 23, 2012 | I was not particularly expecting very much from this novel, but since we cannot get that many books here in China, and it was a special offer, plus, I thought I should give this author, Zadie Smith, so popular in recent years, a try, I bought this book and gave it a shot. The book comes with some kabbalistic chart, which I could not make sense of, not before, nor while or even after reading. Perhaps it is a kind of postmodern distractor, who knows. Naturally, I was sympathetic to the book opening with a main character of Chinese descent, but, as so often happens the name and background seems too contrived: a English - Chinese Jew, named Alex-Li Tandem. I was willing to go along, but basically, if an author cannot come up with a reasonably acceptable name for the (main) character(s), I must say I soon start losing interest. I never really discovered what the book is about, there does not seem to be a plot or story to follow. I suppose the postmodern author will scowl at me for that. The only way to get through this book was by skimming. I doubt I missed much. (  ) edwinbcn | Oct 3, 2011 |
 Ms. Smith's latest novel, ''The Autograph Man,'' is similarly ambitious -- in this case tackling such sprawling themes as the consequences of fame, the hunger for religious faith, the tension between the symbolic and the mundane -- but it's a flat-footed, grudging performance. Dour where ''White Teeth'' was exuberant; abstract and pompous where ''White Teeth'' was brightly satiric; tight and preachy where ''White Teeth'' was expansive.
References to this work on external resources.
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 Audible.comThree editions of this book were published by Audible.com.
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