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Ali Smith

There but for the Paperback – Import, 22 August 2012

by Ali Smith (Author)

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A warm, joyful novel that fizzes with humanity and love of language - by the bestselling author of The Accidental

'There once was a man who, one night between the main course and the sweet at a dinner party, went upstairs and locked himself in one of the bedrooms of the house of the people who were giving the dinner party . . . '

As the hours turn to days to weeks to months and the consequences of this stranger's actions ripple outwards, touching the owners, the guests, the neighbourhood then the whole country, so Ali Smith draws us into a beautiful, strange place where everyone is so much more than they at first appear.

Print length

384 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Penguin (General UK)
Publication date

22 August 2012
Reading age

Baby and up
Dimensions

12.93 x 2.46 x 19.79 cm
ISBN-10

0141025190
ISBN-13

978-0141025193
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Product description

Review

Whimsically devastating. Playful, humorous, serious, profoundly clever and profoundly affecting ― Guardian

Remarkable. A brilliant novel: funny, serious, always surprising, always true ― The Times

I take my hat off to Ali Smith. Her writing lifts the soul ― Evening Standard

A playfully serious or seriously playful novel full of wit and pleasure. Wonderful ― Observer

Eccentric, adventurous, intoxicating, dazzling. This is a novel with serious ambitions that remains huge fun to read. The writing dances along ― Literary Review

Poignant, empathetic, funny. A book full of kindness and compassion ― Time Out

Fizzying, affectionate, sparkling. Smith presents her world view in words as fresh as lemons. A joyful read ― Herald

A tour de force -- Lionel Shriver ― Financial Times

A virtuoso piece of writing, both funny and gripping . . . Smith is a writer with a rich array of conventional strengths ― Times Literary Supplement

A must read ― Toronto NOW

Book Description

A warm, joyful novel that fizzes with humanity and love of language - by the bestselling author of The Accidental

Start reading There but for the on your Kindle in under a minute.

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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin (General UK); 1st edition (22 August 2012)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0141025190
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0141025193
Reading age ‏ : ‎ Baby and up
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 12.93 x 2.46 x 19.79 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 629,393 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 4,272 in Satire (Books)
- 32,467 in Contemporary Women's Fiction
- 47,598 in Literary Fiction (Books)

Customer Reviews:
140 ratings

About the author

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Ali Smith

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Ali Smith CBE FRSL (born August 1962 in Inverness) is a Scottish writer.

She was born to working-class parents, raised in a council house in Inverness and now lives in Cambridge. She studied at the University of Aberdeen and then at Newnham College, Cambridge, for a PhD that she never finished. She worked as a lecturer at University of Strathclyde until she fell ill with CFS/ME. Following this she became a full-time writer and now writes for The Guardian, The Scotsman, and the Times Literary Supplement. Openly gay, she lives in Cambridge with her partner filmmaker Sarah Wood.

In 2007 she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature

In 2009, she donated the short story Last (previously published in the Manchester Review Online) to Oxfam's 'Ox-Tales' project, four collections of UK stories written by 38 authors. Her story was published in the 'Fire' collection.

Smith was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to literature.

Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Customer reviews

5 star		39%
4 star		18%
3 star		14%
2 star		13%
1 star		15%

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EJCH

Smith challenges the status quo

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 July 2013

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It's always homely to read books set in your local area. As with other work of Smith's, there is a focus on time in this novel which suits the location in which it is set- Greenwich. The book is divided into 4 parts: there, but, for, the. Each from the perspective of a different character, and again typical Smith, her writing style in each section reflects each character, even though the novel is written in third person from an omniscient narrative.

It would be difficult to summarise the story as, similar to her Hotel World, the plot revolves around one incident (interspersed with memories). However, in a sentence it is about what history is, or rather, who history is. We are never shown the perspective of the white male who locks himself in the room, although an he is an interesting character, this is partly due to the mystery. We are however taken through the thoughts and perspectives of a woman, a gay man, an elderly lady and a young black girl. Smith challenges the status quo. A good read :)

4 people found this helpful

abigail dean

Such a joyous book.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 January 2020

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Filled with intriguing characters, wonderful wordplay and a real zest for life. Ali Smith writes great dialogue. The book is witty and well observed. It deals with real ordinary life but from a different angle, making it unpredictable and full of empathy.
It's not neat and doesn't tie up all the loose ends, but that's life.

Olivia Battley

There But For

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 November 2019

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Ali Smith is an enthralling writer. She manages to capture your imagination in every one of her books,

Vickie

Ali Smith is brilliant

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 31 August 2020

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Wonderful book in good condition. Thank you

Laura Besley

There but for the

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 November 2012

Verified Purchase

Miles Garth, a guest at a dinner party, locks himself into the upstairs bedroom between the main course and desert. Despite enthusiastic coaxing from the other guests, he stays put and as days turn into weeks and then months, his isolation has an effect on many people's lives.

I was recommended this book by my sister and I wasn't disappointed. It took me a little while to get the title straight, as it's unusual to say the least and doesn't make sense, but this leads to curiosity. Once I started reading it I realised that the book is divided into four sections: There, But, For, The. Now it was clear!

Each section is written from a different person's point of view and each character has his or her own voice. A very distinctive style has been used for the different sections. If you opened the book at any random page, you'd know whose story you were reading.

Each character has a link, albeit sometimes not a close one, to the main character, Miles. Smith has cleverly used the other characters and their interactions with Miles to disclose more about him and his life and the reasons as to why he's locked himself in the upstairs bedroom of a stranger's house.

11 people found this helpful

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