Call number
FIC SMI
Collection
Genres
Series
Publication
Pantheon (2018), 336 pages
Description
Winter? Bleak. Frosty wind, earth as iron, water as stone, so the old song goes. The shortest days, the longest nights. The trees are bare and shivering. The summer's leaves? Dead litter. The world shrinks; the sap sinks. But winter makes things visible. And if there's ice, there'll be fire.
Media reviews
Publisher's Weekly
In the solid second entry in Smith’s seasonally themed quartet of novels, three estranged relatives and a charming stranger argue their way through Christmas in a manor house in the English countryside. Like Autumn, the novel employs a scattered, evocative plot and prose style, reflecting the
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fractured emotional, intellectual, and political states occupied by its contemporary characters. Though the approach misses more than it hits this time out, it’s still an engaging novel due to the ecstatic energy of Smith’s writing, which is always present on the page. Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member EBT1002
It's 2016. Brexit and the U.S. election have made things, well, weird. Art, a vaguely successful blogger (Art in Nature), is heading home to visit his mother, Sophia, for Christmas, but a recent spat with his girlfriend leaves him nervous about showing up solo. Enter Lux. She agrees (for a fee) to
Okay, trying to describe the plot of this novel is nearly impossible and certainly misleading. It's not a plot-driven tale although the story does unfold with compelling forward momentum. But Ali Smith's brilliance is in her surreal imagery, her mind-bending explorations of language's multidimensionality, and her generous development of characters. I love her work and I loved this novel. Lux is a particularly delightful character, serving (I believe) as the author's alter-ego, questioning the other characters' assumptions and perceptions as only an omniscient narrator can usually do.
Here's where she loses the half-star: I had to read the last page several times and I just wasn't sure I got it. Maybe it's just me but the last paragraph was just too jarringly concrete to wrap up an otherwise perfectly metaphorical and metaphysical novel.
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join him and impersonate the Charlotte whom his mother has never met. Finding Sophia somewhat ill and disoriented, Art and Lux text Iris, Sophia's estranged sister, to come provide assistance. Okay, trying to describe the plot of this novel is nearly impossible and certainly misleading. It's not a plot-driven tale although the story does unfold with compelling forward momentum. But Ali Smith's brilliance is in her surreal imagery, her mind-bending explorations of language's multidimensionality, and her generous development of characters. I love her work and I loved this novel. Lux is a particularly delightful character, serving (I believe) as the author's alter-ego, questioning the other characters' assumptions and perceptions as only an omniscient narrator can usually do.
Here's where she loses the half-star: I had to read the last page several times and I just wasn't sure I got it. Maybe it's just me but the last paragraph was just too jarringly concrete to wrap up an otherwise perfectly metaphorical and metaphysical novel.
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LibraryThing member Cariola
Ali Smith has a way of drawing you into her world. I always find myself lost in her novels and, when I've finished them, at a loss as to how to summarize them. This review was stretching out way too long, so I'm starting again, paring away the details that you need to discover for yourself.
Winter
The family story: It's almost Christmas, and Art and his fiancée Charlotte committed to spend the holiday with his mother, Sophie, in Cornwall. But there's a problem: Charlotte, an environmental activist, has called out Art for his lack of any real commitment to pro-nature causes. (There's symbolism in the fact that she destroys his laptop on her way out.) But does Art call Sophie and explain the breakup? Of course not. Instead, he hires a young Croatian girl who looks like she could use some cash to pretend to be Charlotte. Lux turns out to be the quiet hero of the novel.
Sophie and Art don't get along. Sophie, a once-successful businesswoman, doesn't get along with her aging hippie sister, Iris, who is always off somewhere saving the world. And lately, Sophie has been seeing things . . . namely, the floating head of a young child. It's Lux who tells Art that he must call Iris and tell her to come at once, despite the sisters' animosity.
Enough said about the plot. The novel moves back and forth among the family members and back and forth in time through their memories, yet it always comes back to the present day, asking, How did we get to this place? Full of Smith's usual wordplay, Winter gives us bittersweet of the art that once was and the nature that we're losing, yet somehow we're left not so much with a sense of doom as a ray of hope. I can't describe it any better than that without giving away far too much and making it sound like something it isn't. Read it. Find out for yourself. When you're done, you'll want to read it again.
Winter
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is both a family drama and a commentary on the changing climate--both the physical climate and the sociopolitical one. The family: three estranged people and a lovable impostor. The commentary: our world and what it is doing to humanity. One of Smith's targets is technology and the way it removes us from real relationships, responsibility, and personal authenticity. The egotism and isolation it creates feeds into the populist movements that brought us Brexit and Donald Trump, both of which come under Smith's verbal attack. There's a moment when Art, one of the main characters, reads about a crowdfunding effort to raise money to buy a boat that will repel Italian boats trying to rescue refugees. It's hard not to see in that the support in some American quarters for building a wall on the Mexican border and deporting Dreamers to "home countries" that have never in memory been their homes. And it's no surprise that one main character, Arthur, writes a successful blog, Art in Nature--even though he is never out in nature and is rarely artful; it's all just BS for attention and self-gratification.The family story: It's almost Christmas, and Art and his fiancée Charlotte committed to spend the holiday with his mother, Sophie, in Cornwall. But there's a problem: Charlotte, an environmental activist, has called out Art for his lack of any real commitment to pro-nature causes. (There's symbolism in the fact that she destroys his laptop on her way out.) But does Art call Sophie and explain the breakup? Of course not. Instead, he hires a young Croatian girl who looks like she could use some cash to pretend to be Charlotte. Lux turns out to be the quiet hero of the novel.
Sophie and Art don't get along. Sophie, a once-successful businesswoman, doesn't get along with her aging hippie sister, Iris, who is always off somewhere saving the world. And lately, Sophie has been seeing things . . . namely, the floating head of a young child. It's Lux who tells Art that he must call Iris and tell her to come at once, despite the sisters' animosity.
Enough said about the plot. The novel moves back and forth among the family members and back and forth in time through their memories, yet it always comes back to the present day, asking, How did we get to this place? Full of Smith's usual wordplay, Winter gives us bittersweet of the art that once was and the nature that we're losing, yet somehow we're left not so much with a sense of doom as a ray of hope. I can't describe it any better than that without giving away far too much and making it sound like something it isn't. Read it. Find out for yourself. When you're done, you'll want to read it again.
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LibraryThing member thorold
The second instalment of Ali Smith's seasonal sequence - not a sequel to Autumn, but a standalone story that links to its precursor only in its images and themes, with a new set of characters and events.
Sophia is a fairly prosperous retired businesswoman, living in a big old house in Cornwall. Her
This is not a ghost story, Smith tells us, but all the same there are plenty of echoes of A Christmas Carol going on, and both Sophia and Art get their share of quasi-supernatural experiences in the course of the story. Shakespeare's Cymbeline is another strong intertextual presence, helped along by not-Charlotte, who turns out to be a Croatian Shakespeare scholar set adrift by the "Brexit" fiasco. I was expecting there to be a lot about Barbara Hepworth (we get a reproduction of one of her works on the inside back cover), and she does come into the story at a couple of crucial points, but she actually has rather less impact on the text than you would expect from one of Smith's "artists in residence".
Fun, but with plenty of well-observed criticism of the state of the world and the mess we're making of it, Britain in particular. And an overdue reminder of what we all owe to the Greenham Common women, and what they went through.
Sophia is a fairly prosperous retired businesswoman, living in a big old house in Cornwall. Her
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son, Art, is coming to stay for Christmas with his girlfriend Charlotte (only he's just had a fight with her, and brings a Charlotte-stand-in instead...). And when Sophia gets up in the night of Christmas Eve, she discovers that Art has also smuggled in his aunt, Sophia's older sister Iris, a Greenham Common veteran and all-purpose peacenik, who definitely wasn't invited.This is not a ghost story, Smith tells us, but all the same there are plenty of echoes of A Christmas Carol going on, and both Sophia and Art get their share of quasi-supernatural experiences in the course of the story. Shakespeare's Cymbeline is another strong intertextual presence, helped along by not-Charlotte, who turns out to be a Croatian Shakespeare scholar set adrift by the "Brexit" fiasco. I was expecting there to be a lot about Barbara Hepworth (we get a reproduction of one of her works on the inside back cover), and she does come into the story at a couple of crucial points, but she actually has rather less impact on the text than you would expect from one of Smith's "artists in residence".
Fun, but with plenty of well-observed criticism of the state of the world and the mess we're making of it, Britain in particular. And an overdue reminder of what we all owe to the Greenham Common women, and what they went through.
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LibraryThing member lauralkeet
Ali Smith writes books that make me think; her prose is unusual and often experimental. Winter opens in a way that immediately makes you wonder, “what is this all about?” Just as discomfort sets in, Smith transitions to a more traditional narrative style, taking readers inside the mind of
While there’s considerable comedic potential in this setup, Smith doesn’t go there. Just as winter exposes a landscape, Smith exposes the tensions between family members, and the secrets they’ve kept over the years. Charlotte’s stand-in, Lux, is a sympathetic outsider who uses her role for good while managing her own secrets and needs. Smith periodically diverts the reader’s attention to political issues, past and present, and to be honest I’m still thinking about how these segments fit into the narrative. Despite that bit of confusion, this book was compelling, moving, and well crafted.
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Sophia Cleves, an older woman seeking help for some unusual symptoms. And then we meet Sophia’s son Art, who will be visiting Sophia for Christmas accompanied by his partner Charlotte. Except Charlotte recently left Art, and he doesn’t want to tell his mother this, so he offers to pay a young woman he’s barely met a considerable sum to accompany him and pretend to be Charlotte. Surprisingly, she accepts his offer.While there’s considerable comedic potential in this setup, Smith doesn’t go there. Just as winter exposes a landscape, Smith exposes the tensions between family members, and the secrets they’ve kept over the years. Charlotte’s stand-in, Lux, is a sympathetic outsider who uses her role for good while managing her own secrets and needs. Smith periodically diverts the reader’s attention to political issues, past and present, and to be honest I’m still thinking about how these segments fit into the narrative. Despite that bit of confusion, this book was compelling, moving, and well crafted.
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LibraryThing member JBD1
The second in Smith's "Seasonal Quartet," with the expected wordplay, imagination, and cultural commentary. I'm not sure I enjoyed it quite as much as I did Autumn, but it's still an excellent read.
LibraryThing member ClareRhoden
Loved it - after being a little puzzled at the start, i soon got into the swing of things and enjoyed every nuance. Essentail reading!
LibraryThing member jphamilton
With Winter, I’m into my second season of Ali Smith’s seasonal quartet of books. I’m feeling addicted to the style of the writing in this series. Forget plot-driven novels with a firm chronology of happenings and a regular cast of characters that are always involved on the page. This volume
You will never feel like Winter is a sequel to the first book, and while it does playfully dance with time again, showing the characters at very different points in their lives and relationships, these are very different folks from those in the first volume. So much of the attraction of this series to me is the way she creates a rather freeform feeling to them. It’s almost like you’re drifting in and out of a storyline, but I won’t hazard to explain the style beyond saying that the words on the page resemble poetry much of the time, with many spaces and lines that suddenly drop down to continue again. Still, I’m not going to speak to how Smith does what she does with these books, just know it’s masterful.
This season caught my attention immediately, with its first line. “God was dead: to begin with.” The book then goes on for a full page, simply listing many other things that were also dead. With that kickoff to the book, I doubt that many readers were then drifting or skimming the pages. Oh yeah, there is also a disembodied head as a character early on.
There are some stylistic similarities between the first two seasons, as Smith does have a thing for brainy female academics or near-academics, the aforementioned constant playful dance with time, and having young and very old characters beautifully interacting. With Winter she also introduced me to a couple of British artists: the painter Pauline Boty, and the artist and sculptor Barbara Hepworth. Nowadays there is such an ease to finding out so much more about these actual artists online, making the book an even richer experience. She also loves to write in an almost fantastical style, as though the book is drifting in and out of dreams.
Politics raises its head higher in this season than last, and I found that very interesting. In several of the book’s reviews, I noticed more gripes about the politics and several other aspects of this volume, but I found myself thoroughly engaged with the book from that first “God was dead” to its last sentence of “Art is Nature.” There’s a fascinating point in the book when the four characters are brought together in a sprawling house in Cornwall, where they then have a go at each other.
Unlike my feelings for the actual seasons, I found that this Winter was more enjoyable than Smith’s Autumn on the page. Possibly this is because I was hooked on her stylings from page one of this second book, and with the first book I had to learn to appreciate them. Whatever book works better for whoever, this series is an utterly original and enjoyable experience. And now, I’m starting Spring, very close to the real world’s seasonal change.
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does have four main characters and that almost feels overcrowded compared to the sparseness of Autumn. The cast includes the elderly Sophia Cleves, her sister Iris, her son Art, and a paid stand-in (an intellectual Croatian girl named Lux) playing Art’s former girlfriend, Charlotte. You will never feel like Winter is a sequel to the first book, and while it does playfully dance with time again, showing the characters at very different points in their lives and relationships, these are very different folks from those in the first volume. So much of the attraction of this series to me is the way she creates a rather freeform feeling to them. It’s almost like you’re drifting in and out of a storyline, but I won’t hazard to explain the style beyond saying that the words on the page resemble poetry much of the time, with many spaces and lines that suddenly drop down to continue again. Still, I’m not going to speak to how Smith does what she does with these books, just know it’s masterful.
This season caught my attention immediately, with its first line. “God was dead: to begin with.” The book then goes on for a full page, simply listing many other things that were also dead. With that kickoff to the book, I doubt that many readers were then drifting or skimming the pages. Oh yeah, there is also a disembodied head as a character early on.
There are some stylistic similarities between the first two seasons, as Smith does have a thing for brainy female academics or near-academics, the aforementioned constant playful dance with time, and having young and very old characters beautifully interacting. With Winter she also introduced me to a couple of British artists: the painter Pauline Boty, and the artist and sculptor Barbara Hepworth. Nowadays there is such an ease to finding out so much more about these actual artists online, making the book an even richer experience. She also loves to write in an almost fantastical style, as though the book is drifting in and out of dreams.
Politics raises its head higher in this season than last, and I found that very interesting. In several of the book’s reviews, I noticed more gripes about the politics and several other aspects of this volume, but I found myself thoroughly engaged with the book from that first “God was dead” to its last sentence of “Art is Nature.” There’s a fascinating point in the book when the four characters are brought together in a sprawling house in Cornwall, where they then have a go at each other.
Unlike my feelings for the actual seasons, I found that this Winter was more enjoyable than Smith’s Autumn on the page. Possibly this is because I was hooked on her stylings from page one of this second book, and with the first book I had to learn to appreciate them. Whatever book works better for whoever, this series is an utterly original and enjoyable experience. And now, I’m starting Spring, very close to the real world’s seasonal change.
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LibraryThing member RidgewayGirl
Winter, the second in Ali Smith's seasons quintet, centers on Art, who has a side gig writing a blog about nature, a blog he just makes up. When his girlfriend dumps him, he hires a girl he meets at a bus stop to stand in for his girlfriend during his trip to his mother's house for Christmas. But a
As I read this novel, I felt that it was missing the thing that made Autumn such a good book. The relationship between Daniel and Elisabeth had been so extraordinary that following that with a book about difficult people struggling was a hard sell. But then, on a rainy Sunday afternoon, I looked up to see that it was a few hours and half a book later -- the lack of deeply sympathetic characters didn't hamper Smith's ability to deliver a compelling story. I'm looking forward to continuing with this series of books.
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stand in girlfriend is not the greatest secret in the house over the holidays. Art's mother isn't doing well, and her estranged sister is called in to help. What follows is an uncomfortable, but necessary encounter between mother and son, between sisters, and Art learning a little about himself. The only stable person in the house is a homeless foreign girl trying to stay under the radar until the Brexit question is settled. As I read this novel, I felt that it was missing the thing that made Autumn such a good book. The relationship between Daniel and Elisabeth had been so extraordinary that following that with a book about difficult people struggling was a hard sell. But then, on a rainy Sunday afternoon, I looked up to see that it was a few hours and half a book later -- the lack of deeply sympathetic characters didn't hamper Smith's ability to deliver a compelling story. I'm looking forward to continuing with this series of books.
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LibraryThing member rosalita
No matter how hard I try, I struggle to describe an Ali Smith novel. Her books are unlike anything I've ever read, combining quirky characters, clever wordplay and the gauziest of plots to hold it all together. Her narratives usually jump backward and forward in time and are told from multiple
I won't even attempt to summarize the plot, other than to say it's centered around a complicated family dynamic between two sisters, the son that both of them love, and his pretend girlfriend. Along the way, Smith sprinkles the novel with ruminations on the current global political climate (particularly but not exclusively Brexit), old-time radio and television comedians, artists, and peace activists. Oh, and there's a disembodied head floating around. The political commentary on xenophobia and racism is still trenchant but it didn't quite feel as fresh as it did in [Autumn]. I fear that's because as time goes on we (or perhaps just I) am becoming numb to the daily insults to human dignity that continue to be perpetrated by people who seem proud of their inhumanity.
I'm not sure what Smith has in store for us when Spring rolls around, but I have a feeling I will once again be left struggling to explain what, or how, or why.
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points of view. This one, the second in her Seasons tetralogy does not quite reach the heights of serendipitous delight that I got from both Autumn and There But For The, but it still has much to recommend it.I won't even attempt to summarize the plot, other than to say it's centered around a complicated family dynamic between two sisters, the son that both of them love, and his pretend girlfriend. Along the way, Smith sprinkles the novel with ruminations on the current global political climate (particularly but not exclusively Brexit), old-time radio and television comedians, artists, and peace activists. Oh, and there's a disembodied head floating around. The political commentary on xenophobia and racism is still trenchant but it didn't quite feel as fresh as it did in [Autumn]. I fear that's because as time goes on we (or perhaps just I) am becoming numb to the daily insults to human dignity that continue to be perpetrated by people who seem proud of their inhumanity.
I'm not sure what Smith has in store for us when Spring rolls around, but I have a feeling I will once again be left struggling to explain what, or how, or why.
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LibraryThing member DrFuriosa
This is a very different kind of sequel in that none of the original characters are present, but the same setting and timeframe prevails. I'll be interested to see where the sequence goes next.
LibraryThing member cbl_tn
It's hard to tell what is real and what is imagined in this novel about family, memory, belonging, purpose, and politics. The present story is set at Christmas, and many of the memories explored in the novel are of Christmases past. Sophia, Art, and Iris are family. How does Charlotte fit in? How
Smith's creative use of language, allusion, and imagery invigorate my reading experience. However, I have mixed feelings about the social and political commentary in this novel. Her commentary on immigration and post-Brexit Britain works because Charlotte/Lux is a fully rounded and sympathetic character. On the other hand, her more direct comments on Trump and his policies may bring instant buzz among readers who share her antipathy at the expense of enduring recognition that will outlast this moment in history.
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does the family circle adjust (or not) to an outsider? Are the ties of birth and shared memories enough to bind a family together, or are their differences too great to overcome? Sophia is hallucinating and isn't eating, so she is obviously ill. Then Art starts hallucinating, too. So they're both ill, or neither one is ill.Smith's creative use of language, allusion, and imagery invigorate my reading experience. However, I have mixed feelings about the social and political commentary in this novel. Her commentary on immigration and post-Brexit Britain works because Charlotte/Lux is a fully rounded and sympathetic character. On the other hand, her more direct comments on Trump and his policies may bring instant buzz among readers who share her antipathy at the expense of enduring recognition that will outlast this moment in history.
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LibraryThing member sogamonk
Simply brilliant.
Awaiting Spring and Summer
Awaiting Spring and Summer
LibraryThing member KLmesoftly
Witty, strange, surprisingly poignant - with a lot of bits of phrasings I know will come back to me randomly in the future.
LibraryThing member alexrichman
Ali Smith's writing is like pizza - even when it's not so good, it's really good! The set up here is so great, but the story rather fizzles out. Given the fascinating characters, you assume that - had this not been written to a deadline as part of Smith's cycle of seasonal novels - it all could
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have been so much more. Still, there's plenty of smiles along the way to go with the disappointments (and, it must be said, groans for all the TRUMP! BREXIT! topical nods). Show Less
LibraryThing member LynnB
At first, I didn't like this book....but I decided to give it 30 pages. Glad I stuck with it. This is a story about a family -- two sisters and the son of the younger one -- who have drifted apart but are brought back together one winter for Christmas. Son Art has promised to bring his girlfriend
The story isn't linear, but it is the relationships, not the chronology of events, that really matter here. There are several actual or stylistic references to other works -- not sure I got them all -- but the idea of Christmases past, present and future figure. There are also references to contemporary issues (Trump and Brexit) without a lot of background, so I'm not sure this novel will stand the test of time.
Hard book to review. The most positive thing I can say is that after reading it, I've bought the earlier novel in this quartet, Autumn, which I'll be reading soon.
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to meet Mom....but they break up so he brings a young woman (Lux) who he's met at a bus stop...paying her to pretend to be the girlfriend. It is Lux who brings the family together, insisting that Art contact his aunt to help deal with his mother's apparent dementia. The story isn't linear, but it is the relationships, not the chronology of events, that really matter here. There are several actual or stylistic references to other works -- not sure I got them all -- but the idea of Christmases past, present and future figure. There are also references to contemporary issues (Trump and Brexit) without a lot of background, so I'm not sure this novel will stand the test of time.
Hard book to review. The most positive thing I can say is that after reading it, I've bought the earlier novel in this quartet, Autumn, which I'll be reading soon.
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LibraryThing member asxz
Less immediately astonishing than Autumn, but perhaps more cumulatively wonderful. There is a moment, perhaps three quarters of the way through, where two elderly sisters who haven’t spoken in years snuggle up in bed with each other. It’s rather glorious and I can see myself revisiting this
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section over and again. Smith is also great on Greenham Common and Donald Trump. Two books in to this series about seasons and it is already turning into an epic success. Show Less
LibraryThing member lydia1879
I enjoyed this, but I felt like I read this at the wrong time in my life. Nothing against this book but life just HAPPENED and it was stressful and so I didn't take in as much of this book as I should have. It also had to go back to the library and had like, 50 people waiting to read it so I had
Smith's writing is as playful as it is clever, and has a uniqueness all its own. I read this without reading Autumn and didn't feel like I'd missed out on anything for having not read it, however, this makes me want to read Autumn all the more.
What I love about Smith is she has a real eye for writing really revealing dialogue. The characters, in their arguments and their banter with each other, reveal so much about themselves, it's astonishing. The arguments around the Christmas dinner table became thrilling. I turned pages hungrily because I had to know what they were going to say next.
Winter is strange, weird and surreal in its worldliness and familiarity, much like the season itself. I think my only issue with this book is I didn't like the characters as much as I did in Girl Meets Boy.
Let me be clear: the characters were not poorly written or in any way flat, one of them in particular was just unlikeable, and so I struggled with his inner monologue parts of the book because I found him pretentious and insufferable. Which was, I believe, Smith's intention.
Girl Meets Boy, on the other hand, features two queer characters and so of course, that being my first Smith book really did make an impression on me. I loved those characters and found myself cheering from beginning to end.
It's a shame I was so preoccupied when reading this book. I'll have to reread it, once all four books have come out.
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that added, weird pressure in the back of my mind. Smith's writing is as playful as it is clever, and has a uniqueness all its own. I read this without reading Autumn and didn't feel like I'd missed out on anything for having not read it, however, this makes me want to read Autumn all the more.
What I love about Smith is she has a real eye for writing really revealing dialogue. The characters, in their arguments and their banter with each other, reveal so much about themselves, it's astonishing. The arguments around the Christmas dinner table became thrilling. I turned pages hungrily because I had to know what they were going to say next.
Winter is strange, weird and surreal in its worldliness and familiarity, much like the season itself. I think my only issue with this book is I didn't like the characters as much as I did in Girl Meets Boy.
Let me be clear: the characters were not poorly written or in any way flat, one of them in particular was just unlikeable, and so I struggled with his inner monologue parts of the book because I found him pretentious and insufferable. Which was, I believe, Smith's intention.
Girl Meets Boy, on the other hand, features two queer characters and so of course, that being my first Smith book really did make an impression on me. I loved those characters and found myself cheering from beginning to end.
It's a shame I was so preoccupied when reading this book. I'll have to reread it, once all four books have come out.
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LibraryThing member streamsong
Sophia is elderly, living in a mostly closed off house in Cornwall. She’s not alone, though: she is followed everywhere by an unattached ghostly baby’s head with whom she communicates.
Her son Art decides he needs to visit her at Christmas, taking along his girlfriend Charlotte for his mom to
Art’s ex takes over Art’s nature blog and causes mayhem by posting really unusual information including a once-in-a-lifetime rare bird sighting in Art’s mother’s back garden.
And then we have Sophia’s estranged sister Iris, who hasn’t been in contact with her sister for decades. But when Art contacts her for help with his mother, Iris leaves her hippy commune and life of political activism to try to help.
It’s a family Christmas like no other.
Her son Art decides he needs to visit her at Christmas, taking along his girlfriend Charlotte for his mom to
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meet. But Art and Charlotte have a falling out and Charlotte leaves the relationship. Art does not want to tell his mother that his relationship has failed, so he persuades an unknown Croatian girl at a bus stop that he will pay her handsomely if she will pretend to be his estranged girlfriend.Art’s ex takes over Art’s nature blog and causes mayhem by posting really unusual information including a once-in-a-lifetime rare bird sighting in Art’s mother’s back garden.
And then we have Sophia’s estranged sister Iris, who hasn’t been in contact with her sister for decades. But when Art contacts her for help with his mother, Iris leaves her hippy commune and life of political activism to try to help.
It’s a family Christmas like no other.
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LibraryThing member porte01
I really love this book. I devoured it and will need to read it again, slowly. Look up the references I don't fully understand. Think more fully about the connections and ideas. Savour it!
LibraryThing member RandyMetcalfe
It’s a Christmas story, or at least a winter’s tale, and in either case there are bound to be misrepresentations, ghosts, flights of fancy, and the likelihood of mistletoe. Art is a nature blogger, a copyright checker, a fraud. Charlotte (actually Lux) is only posing as Charlotte. Art’s
Ali Smith continues her seasonal series here with the deftness of wordplay that can only be expected by now. Puns, twists, doubled meanings, even enlivened clichés play a part. There are outside viewpoints, both from characters when they were younger and from a current outsider (Lux). There is a coating of love, again not surprising for Smith. And then there are the heavy hitters, the clunky, clanky, current issue of what it means to be an outsider and of those who try to make an outsider of so many of us. Typically delightful and conspicuously serious.
Just what you hope for from the next Ali Smith novel.
Recommended.
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mother Sophia is a bit lost in her big house, especially at Christmas. And Iris, Art’s aunt, is so mythologizing that she may just talk herself into this story. It’s a homecoming of sorts, a dinner party theatrical, an opportunity to take one more look in the mirror.Ali Smith continues her seasonal series here with the deftness of wordplay that can only be expected by now. Puns, twists, doubled meanings, even enlivened clichés play a part. There are outside viewpoints, both from characters when they were younger and from a current outsider (Lux). There is a coating of love, again not surprising for Smith. And then there are the heavy hitters, the clunky, clanky, current issue of what it means to be an outsider and of those who try to make an outsider of so many of us. Typically delightful and conspicuously serious.
Just what you hope for from the next Ali Smith novel.
Recommended.
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LibraryThing member lindapanzo
This second in the Seasonal Quartet offers interesting characters and certainly a unique way of looking at things. Even so, this book, this series just don't work for me. I gave them a second chance but probably will end my reading of the quartet here. I can understand the rave reviews but I just
(I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Net Galley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.)
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don't feel it. (I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Net Galley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.)
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LibraryThing member japaul22
This is the second in a quartet of books that Ali Smith is writing. This one focuses on the relationship between two sisters, their son/nephew, and his "pretend girlfriend" Lux. There are surprise connections and, as in Autumn, commentary on very current events including immigration and refugees.
I liked this but I'm not blown away. I actually think Jenny Erpenbeck's Go, Went, Gone does a better job exploring the refugee crisis. In the end, I didn't find this particularly memorable.
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She also does a beautiful job with subtle word play which I enjoy. I liked this but I'm not blown away. I actually think Jenny Erpenbeck's Go, Went, Gone does a better job exploring the refugee crisis. In the end, I didn't find this particularly memorable.
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LibraryThing member Castlelass
Mother and adult son, Sophia and Art, are planning to spend Christmas together. They are not close. Art has promised to bring his girlfriend, Charlotte, but when they have a major meltdown, he hires Lux, a young Croatian woman, to pretend to be Charlotte rather than tell his mother what has
This is the second book in the Seasonal Quartet. At first it appears to be a grab-bag of topics: art, literary references, family secrets, environmentalism, anti-armament demonstrations, British and American political references, dreams, immigration policies, blogging, and more. It is told in non-linear fashion, jumping around here and there to fill in pieces and parts of the story.
When I started it, I knew I would enjoy the writing but was unsure about the story. Within the first few pages, we encounter a disembodied floating head. This is not the type of story I usually prefer, but I had read Ali Smith before, so I persevered. She certainly has a knack for clever wordplay. I particularly enjoyed Lux – what a fabulous and well-developed character. She saves the “holiday dinner from Hades.” (I am sure most of us have been there.) I liked the second half much better than the first, and, by the end, everything comes together beautifully.
“And I was telling you about it, Lux says, because it’s like the people in the play are living in the same world but separately from each other, like their worlds have somehow become disjointed or broken off each other’s worlds. But if they could just step out of themselves, or just hear and see what’s happening right next to their ears and eyes, they’d see it’s the same play they’re all in, the same world, that they’re all part of the same story.”
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happened. Sophia appears in a weakened state, so they contact her estranged sister, Iris, and ask her to join them. This is the second book in the Seasonal Quartet. At first it appears to be a grab-bag of topics: art, literary references, family secrets, environmentalism, anti-armament demonstrations, British and American political references, dreams, immigration policies, blogging, and more. It is told in non-linear fashion, jumping around here and there to fill in pieces and parts of the story.
When I started it, I knew I would enjoy the writing but was unsure about the story. Within the first few pages, we encounter a disembodied floating head. This is not the type of story I usually prefer, but I had read Ali Smith before, so I persevered. She certainly has a knack for clever wordplay. I particularly enjoyed Lux – what a fabulous and well-developed character. She saves the “holiday dinner from Hades.” (I am sure most of us have been there.) I liked the second half much better than the first, and, by the end, everything comes together beautifully.
“And I was telling you about it, Lux says, because it’s like the people in the play are living in the same world but separately from each other, like their worlds have somehow become disjointed or broken off each other’s worlds. But if they could just step out of themselves, or just hear and see what’s happening right next to their ears and eyes, they’d see it’s the same play they’re all in, the same world, that they’re all part of the same story.”
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LibraryThing member steve02476
Not sure I liked it as much as Autumn, but there was still the beautiful humor and lovely puns in the writing. A little confusing to me, though. Maybe aimed at smarter people!
LibraryThing member therebelprince
I don't think I enjoyed this as much as "Autumn", perhaps the themes feel a bit more pointed, perhaps the layers seem more densely layered yet less dense within themselves. Still, I always enjoy Smith's writing, her clever intertextual references, and her tone of voice. And the broader aims of this
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quartet are admirable. Looking forward to seeing the sun again in Spring. Show Less
Awards
Orwell Prize (Shortlist — 2018)
The British Book Industry Awards (Shortlist — Fiction — 2018)
Europese Literatuurprijs (Longlist — 2019)
New York Public Library Best Books: For Adults (Fiction — 2018)
Pages
336
ISBN
1101870753 / 9781101870754