Zadie Smith's best books: a ranked list.
Her breakthrough novel White Teeth (2000) is the literary equivalent of a hyperactive, ginger-haired tap-dancing ten-year-old – a noisy, sunny story of two World War veterans and their families that captured everyone's imagination. Twenty-five years on, it remains a landmark of British fiction.
On Beauty (2005) is an erudite, expansive novel that reworks EM Forster's classic Howards End. It's a comic campus novel that wraps up art, faith, rap, race, pain and death in a bravura literary homage. The author turns 50 this month, but one wonders what will be her next masterpiece.
The Autograph Man (2002), the first book in our list, is an autobiographical work by Zadie Smith about a young man's obsession with autographs, which began when he was just twelve years old at a wrestling match. The novel has its moments of brilliance, but it does not quite live up to the high standards set by her earlier works.
Feel Free: Essays (2018) is a collection of essays that showcase Smith's wit and intellect. She tackles topics ranging from Justin Bieber to Brexit, Jay-Z to Schopenhauer, with remarkable acuity. Her writing makes you realize how little critical thinking goes into most people's lives – but also leaves you feeling better for it.
NW (2012) is an experimental novel about childhood loyalties and the conflicting yearnings for freedom and belonging in North-West London. It has received a divided response, with some critics calling it 'clunky' or 'weirdly contrived', while others have praised its optimism.
Swing Time (2016), her fifth novel, is about two black women from different backgrounds who become friends as teenagers but drift apart after they reach adulthood. Smith's writing here is at its sharpest, and the book captures growing up in 80s and 90s Britain with a deft subtlety.
The Fraud (2023) explores historical fiction on the Tichborne trial of 1873, an East End-born butcher who claimed to be the long-lost heir to a fortune. The writing is assured but perhaps lacks the visceral impact of her earlier works, which focus more on characters and emotions than plot.
The Wife of Willesden (2021) is a play that transposes Chaucer's Wife of Bath from Canterbury Tales into an open-mic night at a Kilburn pub. The audience is told Alvita's voice "is one I've heard and loved all my life" – brash, honest, cheeky, salacious and outrageous, yet unapologetic. It's a woman speaking her truth down the centuries, full of bawdy humor and bravery.
Her breakthrough novel White Teeth (2000) is the literary equivalent of a hyperactive, ginger-haired tap-dancing ten-year-old – a noisy, sunny story of two World War veterans and their families that captured everyone's imagination. Twenty-five years on, it remains a landmark of British fiction.
On Beauty (2005) is an erudite, expansive novel that reworks EM Forster's classic Howards End. It's a comic campus novel that wraps up art, faith, rap, race, pain and death in a bravura literary homage. The author turns 50 this month, but one wonders what will be her next masterpiece.
The Autograph Man (2002), the first book in our list, is an autobiographical work by Zadie Smith about a young man's obsession with autographs, which began when he was just twelve years old at a wrestling match. The novel has its moments of brilliance, but it does not quite live up to the high standards set by her earlier works.
Feel Free: Essays (2018) is a collection of essays that showcase Smith's wit and intellect. She tackles topics ranging from Justin Bieber to Brexit, Jay-Z to Schopenhauer, with remarkable acuity. Her writing makes you realize how little critical thinking goes into most people's lives – but also leaves you feeling better for it.
NW (2012) is an experimental novel about childhood loyalties and the conflicting yearnings for freedom and belonging in North-West London. It has received a divided response, with some critics calling it 'clunky' or 'weirdly contrived', while others have praised its optimism.
Swing Time (2016), her fifth novel, is about two black women from different backgrounds who become friends as teenagers but drift apart after they reach adulthood. Smith's writing here is at its sharpest, and the book captures growing up in 80s and 90s Britain with a deft subtlety.
The Fraud (2023) explores historical fiction on the Tichborne trial of 1873, an East End-born butcher who claimed to be the long-lost heir to a fortune. The writing is assured but perhaps lacks the visceral impact of her earlier works, which focus more on characters and emotions than plot.
The Wife of Willesden (2021) is a play that transposes Chaucer's Wife of Bath from Canterbury Tales into an open-mic night at a Kilburn pub. The audience is told Alvita's voice "is one I've heard and loved all my life" – brash, honest, cheeky, salacious and outrageous, yet unapologetic. It's a woman speaking her truth down the centuries, full of bawdy humor and bravery.
. I think she needs to bring back that old spark in The Fraud, but still, her writing is always so on point 
. NW was a bit meh for me, felt like it was trying too hard to be deep 
. But Swing Time and Feel Free are straight fire 
. Can't wait to see what she does next, this 50th birthday feels like the start of something new 
i mean, i've only read a few of her books but she seems to write from the heart and tackle so many interesting topics 
like what's with all the essays in feel free? are they meant to be like mini-masterpieces or something? 
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. seriously though, NW is like the underdog of her books - people say it's clunky but I think it's actually a genius exploration of childhood trauma and belonging. and can we talk about Swing Time? it's like she bottled up all her feelings about growing up black in Britian and set them free 
. The Fraud might be a bit of a slow burn, but I love how she took on this obscure historical event and made it relatable to our own times 
, creating these intricate narratives that just draw you in 
... I mean, have you read NW? Like, what's up with people saying it's 'clunky' or 'weirdly contrived'? I think that's just because she's pushing boundaries and taking risks 
... and yeah, maybe The Fraud doesn't have the same impact as some of her other works, but it's still an interesting exploration of historical fiction 
The Autograph Man is like her weakest link imo 
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. From Alvita's raw honesty in The Wife of Willesden to her nuanced exploration of historical fiction in The Fraud, she's always pushing the boundaries of what we can expect from a novel or play. So here's to more masterpiece novels and plays from this literary legend! 
. Zadie Smith is like the ultimate 'writer's writer', always raking in the critical acclaim without actually doing anything groundbreaking 
. And can we talk about how Swing Time is basically the ultimate coming-of-age story, no need for all this analysis