On Beauty
I just finished a book by another author who I had heard much about from my “literary friends” as being one of contemporary fiction’s leading ladies: Zadie Smith. I was not disappointed. The back of the book hailed it as being “hilarious” and as “revealing the culture in which we live”, so when I opened it, I had high expectations. I might not have found myself so much as laughing out loud as I did chuckling at Smith’s clever way of revealing truth, which often times, can be entertaining for the outside observer. She tells a tale of class difference, but she does so with a perfect ear for street talk, academic posturing, and sassy kids–white and black.
The story revolves primarily around the Belsey family: middle-aged father Howard, a British academic who hasn’t published in years holding on to a nontenured teaching position at Wellington University; his wife Kiki, a large, proud black woman who is dealing with her husband’s recent infidelity; and their children, Jerome (a converted Christian), Zora (a student whose greatest gift is her persistence), and Levi (who tries to find his identity as a street “hood” and rebukes his family’s academic lifestyle). Smith’s portrayal of this family is spot-on; her creation of the characters is authentic and consistent, and reading their interaction with each other is like actually living with a family in this generation dealing with each other’s differences, faults, and failures, and trying to love and accept them because, after all, they’re family.
On the other side of the narrative is the Kipps family, a seemingly more perfect family–they, shocking to the Belsey’s, ENJOY being together, as evidenced by the fact that they actually eat meals with each other. Monty Kipps, the patriarch, is another academic who happens to have the exact opposite ideas of Howard, and who happens to be a much better public speaker and publisher. The two have deep resentment against the other, which is brought to a head when Monty is invited to come from England to serve as a guest lecturerer for a semester at Wellington. What results is life-changing for all members of both families, as many have to face the consequences of their actions and the children are made to see their parents for who they really are: people.
I thoroughly enjoyed this read and look forward to reading another of Ms. Smith’s books, whether it be short stories, essays, or fiction. This is another novel I would recommend to someone looking for a “contemporary classic.” 
