On our fourth session of 2026, Wednesday 19 August, we’ll talk about the work of Zadie Smith.
Hailed as the voice of a generation and a modern-day Charles Dickens, Zadie Smith is an astute chronicler of our times. But which of her works of fiction should you read first?
North Books’ alternative book club edges away from the usual convention of only inviting readers to discuss a single book (though this can happen from time to time) to opening up our evenings to a more general celebration of our shared love of storytelling and the people behind the words on the page.
Thoughts in the pot so far include asking readers to choose any work from a given writer to encourage a wider discussion of the author’s creativity and output. We are also interested in dedicated genre events as well as putting poets, journalists, songwriters and historians in the mix. Fiction, non-fiction and everything in between.
It’s a book club but it’s an evolving one. It will be one thing one month and something else the next time we meet – always, though, it will belong to the group and it will be shaped by you. The only common denominator will be words – and a conversation about them.
JOIN US
Participation is free if the book is purchased in advance from North Books at a 10% discount. Otherwise it is £5 on the night. To join the group, please email Jules on jules@northbooks.co.uk. We now offer audio books via Libro FM.
You are welcome to come along to the first session for free to see if it’s your cup of tea but please register your interest in the bookshop.
THE WORK
The April session of Hay Reads.
Zadie Smith has been nominated for the Booker Prize three times, and has appeared on Granta’s list of the Best of Young British Novelists not once, but twice. She has been hailed as the voice of a generation, a modern-day Charles Dickens and an astute chronicler of our times. It’s fair to say she has literary chops.
Smith’s fiction is full of great dialogue, snappy observations, and a love for London, the city where she spent her formative years. She grew up in a working-class family to an English father and a Jamaican mother, and her work is often concerned with class and race, as well as complex family dynamics.
From the UK to America and Africa, and sometimes beyond, Smith’s novels take readers to the heart of her characters’ daily lives, often focusing on small dramas that have big consequences. Her work also distills broader societal preoccupations, capturing, or even sometimes predicting, moments of reckoning.
And it’s not just fiction where Smith shines; her essays and interviews are as incisive as her novels. But if you want to experience the best of Smith as a writer, it’s her novels that are essential reading.
Words by Sarah Shaffi/Booker Prize website
Please let either Peter (who runs Hay Reads) or Jules in the bookshop know if you are planning on attending so we can welcome you - new members always welcome although we try an limit attendees to 14.
Pop in for more guidance if you would like a steer.