It takes bollocks to model oneself on an acknowledged master of the English novel of manners, that too no less a personage than E.M. Forster, whose mastery of craft was equalled only by his erudition on the craft of literary masterpieces. It takes even bigger bollocks to then take Forster's most accomplished masterpiece, Howard's End, raze it to the ground, strip its materials to brick, mortar, plank and panelling, relocate every item in the manner of a self-titled Lord of New England moving his just-purchased Scottish castle across the Atlantic, and rebuild it painstakingly into a literary edifice that seems perfectly at home in its new location and time.
But having taken on that challenge, it then takes bollocks the size of cannonballs to go ahead and title the book in question On Beauty and then make it beautiful in every sense: prose, structure, characterization, dialogue, metaphor, even the artful references to art woven into the narrative. An astonishing literary act of genius, that actually manages to out-Forster Forster and out-Zadie Zadie Smith. And yet, that is Zadie Smith's third novel, the Booker-nominated On Beauty.
Pause here for applause. A long pause.
Smith might have lost the Booker, but not by much. In any case, the whopping success of On Beauty guarantees her much fatter royalty cheques than the long-deserving John Banville whose superlative The Sea neatly kippered the coveted prize from under her polished fingernails. She won't be left grasping: already laden with her share of trophies, she can be sure to fetch more for the groaning mantlepiece in the months and years to come. One of Britain's youngest novelists, she has not stopped manufacturing brilliance ever since she burst onto the literary scene with White Teeth, and while her sophomore effort The Autograph Man disappointed a few, she more than makes up for it with this elegant, poised, and almost perfect third submission.
Article comments
1 - Aaman
A veritable feast - the comparison with Forster. Will devour this book once I am done with my current reading list, and most importantly, Salman's "Shalimar the Clown"
2 - Ashok K.
Hey Aaman, if you review Shalimar The Clown, I'll look forward to reading your views! And yes, do check out On Beauty - it surprised me too.
3 - Eric Olsen
a model review Ashok, written in language both sumptuous and elegant, bursting with your external and internal reasons for so enthusiastically endorsing the book, after perhaps at first resisting the Zadie Smith bandwagon. You sure made me want to read it and convinced me of her gift - thanks!
4 - Ashok K. Banker
Hey Eric, just my usual two paise worth. Glad you like it! I love the new look of the site by the way, and the new structuring too. Makes browsing much more fun! Have been tied up with book deadlines of late, but hope to post more often from December onwards. This is really a great place to share views!
5 - Eric Olsen
very glad to hear it - we are honored to have you