Until right about now, I didn't even notice the head shape on the cover of my copy of On Beauty by Zadie Smith. My signed copy, I should say - last year, I had the pleasure of attending a talk with Zadie up in north London where, although expecting her new collection of essays to be included in the ticket price, in fact it was a selection of old paperbacks, signed by the author in a hurry before the event. I stepped up to pick up a book at the very best moment, not only because there were only a few copies left (of which this was the only one I hadn't read) but also because I got to watch her sign it. And then smile at her. Even more extravagantly, I asked her a question later on. It was a great event.
Back to the book though! It's been a while since I've read anything from Zadie that I really loved. I read Swing Time last year, but had an awful time doing so. I know that's a divisive book as it is, and I unfortunately was in the camp that didn't like it, or perhaps understood it. After which, I think I got a sort of Zadie Smith-fatigue.
Which is awful of course, considering how incredibly good White Teeth was, which I swiftly followed with N-W, another excellent novel. Writing this, I do wonder if her work has been translated into other languages. If not, why on earth not?
On Beauty tells the story of a few years in the life of a mixed-race, British/American family, and as always, the author doesn't shy away from tackling massive topics in one relatively short book. The issues of culture and national identity, political values, human nature, religion and yes, even beauty, are all tackled through the viewpoints of the family members and other characters whose lives link with the Belseys' in one way or another. It is not light reading, I should warn you.
What did I like about it?
Obviously, Zadie Smith is a literary genius. I wanted to not enjoy this book (due to my earlier mentioned ZS-fatigue), but I couldn't. I feel she could write about pretty much anything - motor cars, the history of mining, rubber tires - and I would still be compelled to read it. She is the master of description, comparable to really no other writer I know of - "A boy called Ron, of delicate build whose movements were tidy and ironic, who liked to be clean, who liked things Japanese. A girl called Daisy, tall and solid like a swimmer, with an all-American ingénue face, sandy hair and more of a salty manner than she required, given her looks..."
On Beauty has a way of making things happen without anything major really happening. The main event is that of the Belsey dad's infidelity - important here because he is white, but also because of his values. Kiki Belsey, the mother, befriends the wife of Monty Kipps, Howard's (the Belsey father) sworn political and professional enemy. One of the Belsey sons becomes religious. The other finds a cause to believe in, one that feels alien to the family. The daughter falls in love. Small, seemingly separate events have a way of interweaving and quietly building up to a heart-wrenching, difficult ending.
The characters are mostly all strong and so human, so believable that I can see the Belseys walking off the page and into my living room. They are all so painfully human, in fact, that their very humanness becomes the plot. They do annoying, stupid things, and they regret them, and they refuse spontaneity and they blackmail.
All these small things add up to a truly captivating read.
What was I not massively fond of?
The one character I struggled with was Victoria Kipps, the daughter of Monty Kipps, who feels a bit shallow at times, a bit difficult to understand, whose motivations are sometimes unclear. To me, she feels a bit like a device - albeit an important one - as if she is dropped into scenes where she is especially needed. None the less, she terrifies me.
My other objections are all human and in no way criticize the novel. Because in some way, it reads like a Russian drama - things that people hope for ultimately don't come true, characters don't act the way they know they should, often things that could change don't change in the end. We root for so many things, but of course, it wouldn't be as good a book if all was well in the end.
I also bloody hated Howard Belsey.
Overall...
Despite the many themes tackled in the novel, to me the strongest was that of a family trying to pull together but desperately failing. It was strong and painful and sad to read.
Zadie is so great at digging deep down into her characters and bringing out the best and the worst. It often feels like a mirror. So of course, this book is often uncomfortable to read. But it is beautiful, well thought-through and addictive, in a way. I remember why I loved her in the first place.
8/10
