Autumn

By: Ali Smith

Narrated by: Melody Grove

From the Man Booker-shortlisted and Baileys Prize-winning author of How to Be Both, a breathtakingly inventive new novel - about aging, time, love, and stories themselves - that launches an extraordinary quartet of books called Seasonal. Listeners love Ali Smith's novels for their peerless innovation and their joyful celebration of language and life. Her newest, Autumn, has all of these qualities in spades, and - good news for fans! - is the first installment in a quartet. Seasonal, comprised of four standalone books, separate yet interconnected and cyclical (as are the seasons), explores what time is, how we experience it, and the recurring markers in the shapes our lives take and in our ways with narrative. Fusing Keatsian mists and mellow fruitfulness with the vitality, the immediacy, and the color hit of Pop Art, Autumn is a witty excavation of the present by the past. The novel is a stripped-branches take on popular culture and a meditation, in a world growing ever more bordered and exclusive, on what richness and worth are, what harvest means.

©2016 Ali Smith (P)2016 W.F. Howes

Critic reviews

"Ali Smith's moving, dreamlike novel, the first in a planned quartet, is made even lovelier by narrator Melody Grove's consummate narration.... Grove never loses the plot's twisting thread, confidently guiding the listener as the story moves from the present day to 1960s London to WWII France. She imbues her performance with warmth and humor that help ground the story, and her slight variations in tone and accent make the characters easily discernable." (AudioFile)

Cool

What an incredibly cool and original book!! "She said"- I loved it. Such a stageable novel. Ali Smith rocks :).

A

A Book For Our Times

This is a lovely book. I loved reading the print version and listening to it as well on Audible. It mirrors the puzzlement of the xenophobia sweeping the West. But it’s told in a kind and often funny voice. Autumn is the best book I’ve read in years.

Mind stimulating and well-written

Where does Autumn rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is the best that I have listened to and I go back again and again to get even more from the stimulating and thoughtful dialog.

What did you like best about this story?

I especially liked the range of thought and depth of exploration of ideas.

What does Melody Grove bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

... a poetic approach to prose & the ability to go back to a numbered channel

If you could rename Autumn, what would you call it?

Exploration of Life

Any additional comments?

I liked being able to go back to channels previously listened to

Lyrical and touching

Ali Smith has an evocative, imagistic way with words; not a plot-driven book but she captures a full spectrum of emotions in this “love” story between a woman and the courtly neighbor 70 years her senior.
Narrator is tops!

A masterpiece

Ali Smith weaves words and story together in a way that grip you from beginning to end.

Lovely book, beautifully read

This is such a moving book, with an exquisite reading. I have listened to it 3 times. It is one of the most beguiling deliveries I have heard.

A wonderful first Fall read

"Autumn" is at once funny, warm, and deeply interesting, if you care about art, Sixties pop culture, or both. It's not about Autumn, or even set in Autumn, but by the end of the book the title makes perfect sense. This is a book populated by many strong female characters, zero toxic male characters, and more than one fully realized older character, which is rather unique these days. The writing is at once beautiful and quirky, and the narrator is talented, charming and perfectly suited to the story. A satisfying listen, from first page to last.

Transported...

I felt immersed in the story-telling. Looked forward to hearing, “What are you reading?” I was left feeling hopeful and looking forward to “Spring”.

Incredible use of language

Any additional comments?

I can't wait for the next book in this trilogy. The use of language by Smith is so intricate and consuming that it often made me just pause and smile and enjoy. The structure of this novel winds the reader into and around the world surrounding Elizabeth with so many fascinating tendrils of human relationships in time and over time. The mysteries presented are intriguing and beg for the second book to be released asap. I can't remember being more fully immersed in a novel.

Amazing Audiobook!

I was worried about picking this one up as an audiobook but the narrator was just AMAZING! For some reason I kept associating her voice with Helena Bonham Carter’s ~ it had a whimsical feeling to it that made me think of her wide range of characters and made this story feel like a dream! The story itself is odd and disjointed, but full of rich underlying messages - and some explicitly put ones too - and great discussions on art, time, politics, life, etc! Overall, this book leaves you with a lot to think about and is something that will keep you thinking and make you want to talk and keep its claws in you!