SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLERSHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2017A once-in-a-generation series, Ali Smith's Seasonal quartet is a tour-de-force about love, time, art, politics, and how we live now. 'Undoubtedly Smith at her best. Puckish, yet elegant; angry, but comforting' The Times Daniel is a century old. Elisabeth, born in 1984, has her eye on the future. The United Kingdom is in pieces, divided by a historic once-in-a-generation summer. Love is won, love is lost. Hope is hand in hand with hopelessness. The seasons roll round, as ever . . .Discover all four instalments: Autumn, Winter, Spring and Summer. Ali Smith's new novel, Companion piece, is available now.*****ONE OF THE GUARDIAN'S BEST BOOKS OF THE 21ST CENTURY 'Undoubtedly Smith at her best. Puckish, yet elegant; angry, but comforting' The Times'Bold and brilliant' Observer'Terrific, extraordinary, playful . . . There is an awful lot to lift the soul' Daily Mail
Format: CONTRIBUTORS: Ali SmithEAN: 9780241973318COUNTRY: United KingdomPAGES: WEIGHT: 193 gHEIGHT: 198 cm
United Kingdom, Great Britain, Seasonal interest: Autumn, Fall, Modern and contemporary fiction: general and literary, Narrative theme: Politics, Narrative theme: Social issues
I love Ali Smith's writing, and I've been keeping Autumn for an end-of-book holiday treat, In a country apparently divided against itself, a writer such as Smith is more valuable than a whole parliament of politicians, Bold and brilliant, dealing with the body blow of Brexit to offer us something rare: hope, Humour, grace, solace...A light-footed meditation on mortality, mutability and how to keep your head in troubled times, Transcendental writing about art, death and all the dimensions of love. It's not so much 'reading between the lines' as being blinded by the light between the lines - in a good way
Ali Smith was born in Inverness in 1962. She is the author of Spring, Winter, Autumn, Public library and other stories, How to be both, Shire, Artful, There but for the, The first person and other stories, Girl Meets Boy, The Accidental, The whole story and other stories, Hotel World, Other stories and other stories, Like and Free Love. Hotel World was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and the Orange Prize. The Accidental was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the Orange Prize. How to be both won the Bailey's Prize, the Goldsmiths Prize and the Costa Novel of the Year Award, and was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. Autumn was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2017 and Winter was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize 2018. Ali Smith lives in Cambridge.
SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLERSHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2017A once-in-a-generation series, Ali Smith's Seasonal quartet is a tour-de-force about love, time, art, politics, and how we live now. 'Undoubtedly Smith at her best. Puckish, yet elegant; angry, but comforting' The Times Daniel is a century old. Elisabeth, born in 1984, has her eye on the future. The United Kingdom is in pieces, divided by a historic once-in-a-generation summer. Love is won, love is lost. Hope is hand in hand with hopelessness. The seasons roll round, as ever . . .Discover all four instalments: Autumn, Winter, Spring and Summer. Ali Smith's new novel, Companion piece, is available now.*****ONE OF THE GUARDIAN'S BEST BOOKS OF THE 21ST CENTURY 'Undoubtedly Smith at her best. Puckish, yet elegant; angry, but comforting' The Times'Bold and brilliant' Observer'Terrific, extraordinary, playful . . . There is an awful lot to lift the soul' Daily Mail
Format: CONTRIBUTORS: Ali SmithEAN: 9780241973318COUNTRY: United KingdomPAGES: WEIGHT: 193 gHEIGHT: 198 cm
United Kingdom, Great Britain, Seasonal interest: Autumn, Fall, Modern and contemporary fiction: general and literary, Narrative theme: Politics, Narrative theme: Social issues
Ali Smith was born in Inverness in 1962. She is the author of Spring, Winter, Autumn, Public library and other stories, How to be both, Shire, Artful, There but for the, The first person and other stories, Girl Meets Boy, The Accidental, The whole story and other stories, Hotel World, Other stories and other stories, Like and Free Love. Hotel World was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and the Orange Prize. The Accidental was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the Orange Prize. How to be both won the Bailey's Prize, the Goldsmiths Prize and the Costa Novel of the Year Award, and was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. Autumn was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2017 and Winter was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize 2018. Ali Smith lives in Cambridge.
Dramatiese wisselwerking tussen 'n onderhandelaar en 'n skieter
“Ons het ’n gyselaarsituasie in Stellenbosch.” Blinde kol boei vanaf hierdie openingsin, met ’n spanningslyn wat deurgaans snaarstyf volgehou word. Dit is 2 Oktober 2025 en ’n man het sy pad ingeskiet in ’n dameskoshuis. Hy hou verskeie studente aan en kort-kort klap daar nog skote. Hy vra vir Karla Blanckenberg by die naam, wil spesifiek met háár praat.
Karla onthou dat die skieter, Altus, die seun is wat sy in 2019 oorreed het om nie van ’n dak af spring nie. Die storielyn wissel behendig en ongeforseerd tussen hierdie twee tydgleuwe, ook tussen die voorgeskiedenis van die skieter en dié van Karla.
Benewens die spanningsvolle gebeure, word daar sensitiewe dinge oopgeskryf, soos selfmutilasie. “Ink kan sê hoe sy voel. Maar bloed kan dit ’n ruk lank wegvat.” (p.156) Daar is ook Altus se obsessie met mooi meisies en seks wat hy voel dat hy verdien maar nie kry nie. Daar is baie bloedvergieting, maar Martin Steyn is ’n meester wat dit verteerbaar aanbied, selfs vir ’n redelike sensitiewe leser soos ekself.
Adjudant Karla Blanckenberg en haar spanlid, Adjudant Colin Menck, het verskyn in vroeëre boeke van hierdie skrywer, maar Blinde Kol kan op eie bene staan. Dit is ’n produk van Lapa Uitgewers.
'n Joernalis soek na 'n fonds op 'n roosplaas in Marokko, en ontbloot geheime
Om ’n laaste wens van haar pa te eerbiedig, vertrek Gemma na Marokko, en spesifiek na die roosplaas, Sangrose. Die Marokkaanse landskap daarheen word goed uitgebeeld en verklaar waarom Soet rose, donker geheime, deur Frenette van Wyk uitgegee is as ’n romanse in die Reis sub-genre. Die titel is ook goed gekies, want op die pragtige plaas met duisende roosbome, is daar beslis geheime opgesluit.
Gemma is ’n joernalis met ’n ondersoekende gees. Haar pogings om die geheime te ontbloot, bring haar in uiteindelik in konflik met die eienaar van die plaas, die wewenaar, Julien, terwyl daar vanuit die staanspoor ’n definitiewe aantrekking tussen hulle was.
Die storie herinner my sterk aan Daphne du Maurier se Rebecca, hoewel dit in verskillende tye en plekke afspeel. Dalk is dit die rosetuine, maar veral die antagonis, die hatige Mrs Danvers. In hierdie verhaal is dit Samira wat openlik vyandig is en soos ’n skim verskyn oral waar Gemma beweeg.
Soet rose, donker geheime is ’n publikasie van Lapa Uitgewers onder die Romanza druknaam.
Luke en Lilihanna is lank genoeg in ’n verhouding dat sy al ’n diamantring begin verwag. Drama sommer met die intrapslag: hy verlaat die prentjie op onbedagsame wyse en laat vir Lilihanna verslae agter. Die volgende man wat te voorskyn kom is die skatryk Sebastian. Ek het nie geweet wat om te maak met hierdie karakter nie. Is hy ’n gewillige held of ’n onwaarskynlike held? Of is die held dalk die fotograaf, Leo, met sy lang hare, sy motorfiets en sy byna rebelse aantreklikheid?
Voorkoms staan sentraal in die storielyn. Sebastian, wat ’n reeks haarsalonne en ’n holostiese spa besit waar oormaaksessies aan die orde van die dag is, verras met ’n stelling: “Liefde is die onwerklike opwelling van emosie wanneer jy onverwags daardie één sien, ongeag of hulle nou in aanddrag uitgevat is of in vodde.” (p.31)
Skrywer Beatrix Smith was ook nie haastig om al my vrae te beantwoord nie, en ek gaan dit net so aan lesers oorlaat om te bepaal wié Lilihanna se hart gaan steel. My bestemde beminde is ’n Romanza uit Lapa Uitgewers se stal.
