This novel is a slice of several cultures I have little experience with: East Coast black urbanites, Ivy League university life, mixed-race families, London, art history and beat poetry. Many have criticized the story for its inauthentic dialogue and slow pacing. I can't speak for the dialogue except the words sound true to me though I do understand why others had problems with it. The apparent slower pacing worked well, I thought, because the prose was much more introspective. This book allows you to immerse yourself in each scene and each exchange of dialogue, and the added commentary is more like our own loose reflections on daily life, which give it a realism that others might find slow or irrelevant.

I selected On Beauty for my book club and no one finished it. It is worth noting that few people tried, but those that did had a hard time enjoying it. Please do not pick it up if you expect to be engrossed right away -- I had to get past the halfway point to start enjoying the characters.

Engrossing! This book has become my one of my top 10 favorites. Zadie Smith is a memorizing storyteller. She astutely expatiates on self-identity/self-discovery struggles, particularly faced by mixed-race and minority persons. This book captures my experience, as a black woman, living in racially homogenous Boston (in comparison to my native Chicago). However, it is not only for "P.O.C.s" (people of color). She offers a glimpse into the hardships of marriage, middle-agedom, and the politics and reconditeness of academia. Just read the book!

Hard to get into, and I didn't finish it. The rave reviews made me feel that I should continue, for it was supposed to be hilarious. However, the tense relationship of family members and language of the teens sounded too much like home to be funny.

Very, very good book to listen to.. I think I like "White Teeth", Smith's first novel, even more. I would love to discuss it with someone who has read it.

A hard book to "get into", but worth the effort.