The most telling response to this book is that almost no one in the group finished it. No one had anything particularly bad to say about it. But most of the responses were along the lines of "yeah, um... ??"One reader compared to Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, which, no, of course that's not fair. But the comparison was in reference to "one of those books that doesn't have a plot, per se, or a climax, per se, but is more a period of time in the life of someone or someones." The comparison was not to Smith's benefit -- while Achebe managed to capture the attention of a typically plot-driven reader with his beautiful writing, characterization, and details, Smith's story(ies) more often fell on uncaring ears.
It's not that the writing was bad. It was interesting. It was different. But Smith didn't do enough to engage the reader. You just never really cared what she had to say next. And a few parts got really interesting... and then she just moved on.
It was a little like going to a four course meal, but getting the check after the 2nd course. (or more inappropriate analogies which I'll not state here, but which you can probably imagine)
Also telling was the fact that while a few of the girls said they will probably finish the book, most seemed less than interested in doing so and those who had not yet begun were wholly uninspired to do so.
The one reader who did finish the book did not seem to hate it, but did not seem to really have anything particularly good to say about it. She said she wished she knew more about the area because she felt like she missed a lot of cultural references that might have made the book more interesting/engaging to someone who caught the references. She also said that the dialogue was confusing and the path that the stories took was not always clear. This was a point on which the other members agreed.
As for me, I had never read anything by Zadie Smith before, but I had heard great things about On Beauty and White Teeth. Based on what I've read in other reviews, it would be unfair to judge Smith on NW: her other books are apparently much better. Regardless, that may be what has happened with me. I'm not particularly inclined to pick up another Zadie Smith amid my busy schedule... perhaps in a few decades. If I were to rate an un-finished book (it is highly unusual for me to not finish a book in the first place), I would probably give this a 2 1/2 of 5. There was potential for an interesting story, but I felt like Smith just kept taking away the prize. Perhaps there's supposed to be a lesson in all that, but I read to be mentally-stimulated (if not always intellectually ;)). At about 1/2-way through, I gave up and moved on.
Comments are, as always, welcome!
