http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her This is last week's news, but it's still circulating around the tubes, and since it's a fairly obscure British lit prize, I'm going to repeat it here: Zadie Smith refused to award a literary prize because she felt that none of the books were worth celebrating. Here's the money quote from her statement: The little Willesden Herald Prize is only about good writing, and it turns out that a prize faithfully recognizing this imperative must also face the fact that good writing is actually very rare. For let us be honest again: it is sometimes too easy, and too tempting,... Copyright 2008 Wed, 13 Feb 2008 11:51:13 -0800 Wed, 13 Feb 2008 18:30:36 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Good for her! I too heart Z. Smith. Literary prizes aren't races where, no matter how slow the competitors, a winner can be declared. I will be eager to read the work of someone who does win the prize since I am now aware that excellence in writing will be honored rather than just the best story of the bunch.

]]> Printer http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her#c936496 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her#c936496 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:06:13 -0800 Zadie Smith's name (and book White Teeth) have been popping up in papers/blogs/conversations LIKE CRAZY these past couple of weeks. I've even seen an unusually high number of people reading her book on the bus lately. I liked the book and have read it a few times, but wasn't it published in 2000? And her new on in '05? I kinda wish that the literary circle would [for lack of me thinking of any other way to put it] move on from her and begin focusing on new fantastically accessible authors.

]]> *gong* http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her#c936688 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her#c936688 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:51:30 -0800 @2: Who are these new, fantastically accessible authors? Do tell, and I'll stop re-reading White Teeth!

]]> bkwrm http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her#c937360 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her#c937360 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 16:03:47 -0800 Maybe she's right, maybe she's wrong, but she's fucking pretentious as hell. I hate people like that. I've liked her books - but probably won't bother reading another.

]]> Ed http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her#c937719 http://slog.thestranger.com/2008/02/another_reason_to_love_her#c937719 Books Wed, 13 Feb 2008 18:30:36 -0800