A playful, form-bending novel from the Booker Prize-shortlisted, Women's Prize-winning author of How to be both and the critically acclaimed Seasonal quartet

'Playful and audacious' Independent

Narrated by a character who is haunted - literally - by a former lover, Artful slips slyly between fiction and essay, guiding the reader thrillingly through a sequence of ideas on art and literature. With Smith's trademark humour, inventiveness, poignancy and critical insight, this is unique experiment in form, style, life, love, death, immortality and what art can mean.

Based on four electrifying lectures given by the author at Oxford University, and exploring the explosive connections between art, story, memory and grief - Artful is a tidal wave of ideas to blast away the cobwebs and change how you see the world.

*****

'Artful is a revelation; a new kind of book altogether . . . makes you glad to be alive' Jackie Kay

'Powerful and moving' London Review of Books

'Blending of criticism and fiction, Artful belongs in a genre of its own . . . Joyful for anyone interested in the art of writing, and living, well' Anita Sethi, New Statesman

Both heartfelt fiction concerning a character haunted by a dead lover, and dazzling essay on literature and art, Artful is Ali Smith's extraordinary exploration of life, love and writing.


About the Author
Ali Smith was born in Inverness in 1962. She is the author of several novels and short story collections including, The Accidental, Hotel World, How to Be Both and the Seasonal Quartet. She has been four times shortlisted for the Booker Prize, has won the Goldsmiths Prize, Orwell Prize, Costa Best Novel Award and the Women's Prize. Ali Smith lives in Cambridge.

Awards
Short-listed for Goldsmiths Prize 2013.



Book Information
ISBN 9780241959572
Author Ali Smith
Format Paperback
Page Count 240
Imprint Penguin Books Ltd
Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
Weight(grams) 211g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 17mm