Ali Smith - Autumn

Rating: 5/5

Review: 
Thoughtful, touching and involving

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book.  I liked How To Be Both enough to give this one a go, and I found it very involving and perceptive.

It is hard to say exactly what Autumn is about.  Daniel, aged over 100, is lying largely asleep in a care-home bed in 2016.  32-year-old Elisabeth sits by his bed reading; she was Daniel's neighbour when she was about 10 and formed a strong relationship with him as he imparted his humanity and insight to her.  The book consists of episodes from the past of both characters (and later of Pauline Boty, a founder of the pop-art movement) plus reflections on post Referendum Britain.  It sounds pretty ghastly, but I found it full of humane and perceptive observations and exceptionally good writing, and I became very involved with the characters.

Ali Smith reflects on aspects of life in Britain in 2016 and has important things to say about what may matter in life, how communities and individuals relate to each other, women and sexism and plenty more.  There are some dream sequences which I found a bit tedious (even though they are far better done than most) but apart from them I found the whole thing really gripping, although I find it hard to say why.  It is partly the lovely, distinctive but readable prose, partly the human insight and partly Smith's ability to come up with little gems like, "…I thought about you the whole time.  Even when I wasn't thinking about you, I thought about you."  I love that, and plenty else in the book – like Daniel's invariable greeting "Hello.  What are you reading?" or how beautifully touching the lyrics of a song become because we have had a glimpse of what is behind them.

I'm sure this won't be for everyone, but I'd recommend giving it a try even if you're dubious about it.  If you do find it's for you, it will be a very rewarding, thoughtful and touching read.