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The First Person And Other Stories (2008)

by Ali Smith(Favorite Author)

3.61 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0241144264 (ISBN13: 9780241144268)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Hamish Hamilton Ltd

review 1: Ali Smith has such a distinctive voice that it's hard to compare this with other short story collections. It's almost impossible to imagine anyone else having written a single one of these. She constantly plays with form and structure, subverting expectations and derailing tradition with apparent glee. At times it can become a little overwhelming, but Smith's unique voice - and the tenderness that often rests at the heart of her experimentation - make this a worthwhile and intriguing read. There are some glimmers of her later work too (including Man Booker shortlisted novel How To Be Both), in the exploration of parallel stories and tales-within-tales.
review 2: Ok, so writing short stories about writing short stories is clever? No, it's not. It's arch and self... more indulgent. Smith is far better when she writes a story, some of which are rather good. Overall there's that "I'm a really clever Oxbridge graduate, look what I can do" feel about this work. Now a good writer has no need to do this, it's a peculiar and very British snobbery about writing, this preoccupation with credentials. All in all the writing is self celebratory, simplistic, at times tiresome and it has a narrow appeal to a specific middle class angst. I would recommend reading some Chekov and Murakami short stories instead. less

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