5/12/2023 0 Comments Ali smith how to be both review![]() ![]() Written in free and indirect style, George grieves for her mother through a series of invented rituals while remembering the time she spent with her. Shortly before her death Carol, an economist and political artist, took George to view the Palazzo Schifanoia in Ferrara where some of del Cossa’s finest works are to be found. Unsurprisingly, one of the themes that runs through both stories is that of luck. So, from the get go, the story you encounter is somewhat down to chance. Half the books were printed with George’s narrative first and the other half with del Cossa’s. The other section is voiced by Francesco del Cossa, a fifteenth century fresco painter from Italy. ![]() One section follows the contemporary narrative of teenage girl George, whose mother, Carol, has recently died as a result of a freak allergic reaction. She shifts from past to present with gusto and is almost dizzying in her linguistic sense of play. As is typical of Smith, she pushes the novel form to its limits with humorous invention. How to be both is Ali Smith’s sixth novel and her third to be shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. ![]()
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