The First Person and Other Stories: Book summary and reviews of The First Person and Other Stories by Ali Smith

The First Person and Other Stories Summary

In these energetic, exhilarating stories, Ali Smith portrays a world of everyday dislocation, where people nevertheless find connection, mystery, and love. In "Astute Fiery Luxurious," a fetid misdelivered package throws the life of a couple into disarray. A boy’s mysterious illness in "I Know Something You Don’t Know" drives his mother to seek guidance from homeopathic healers, with inconclusive results. In “The Child,”an unnervingly mature young boy voices offensive humor that genteel society would rather not acknowledge. And a woman meets her fourteen-year-old self but can’t figure out how to guide her--or even whether she should in "Writ."

As Smith explores the subtle links between what we know and what we feel, she creates an exuberant, masterly collection that is packed full of ideas, humor, nuance, and compassion. Ali Smith and the short story are made for each other.

The First Person and Other Stories Reviews

"At once quirky and compulsively readable, this collection puts a layered and enjoyable spin on the many forms of the short story." - Publishers Weekly.

"Starred Review. This collection will appeal to anyone looking for imaginative short fiction that is experimental enough to be thought-provoking but also remains accessible to the discerning reader." - Library Journal.

"These technical ploys are all carried off impressively, and Smith cracks some good jokes along the way. But after 200 pages, a few weaknesses emerge as well. While her supply of narrative hooks appears to be inexhaustible, she rarely develops them dramatically... " - The Guardian (UK).

"There is plenty in Smith's preoccupation with form to engage the literary theorist, but it is also possible to read her more simply; as a writer seething with stories who is compelled to experiment with how she puts them on the plate." - The Daily Telegraph.

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Ali Smith Author Biography

Ali Smith is the author of six works of fiction, including the novel Hotel World, which was shortlisted for both the Orange Prize and the Booker Prize in 2001 and won the Encore Award and the Scottish Arts Council Book of the Year Award in 2002, and The Accidental, which won the Whitbread Award in 2005 and was shortlisted for the 2005 Man Booker Prize and the 2006 Orange Prize. Her story collections include Free Love, which won the Saltire First Book Award and a Scottish Arts Council Award, and The Whole Story and Other Stories. Born in Inverness, Scotland, in 1962, Smith now lives in Cambridge, England.

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