White Teeth, Zadie Smith

I really like Zadie Smith and have read a lot of articles about and by her, and watched her speak on various topics, but this is the first novel of hers I've read. I thought it was excellent. The way it weaves stories through the different parts and knits them together at the end is very skillful. The novel follows two men, their wives and their children (and meanwhile weaves in the stories of their ancestors) as they navigate Britain. It is a satisfying novel in terms of story but also Smith has so much to say about 'multicultural Britain' and about people in general in terms of experience, fear, beliefs, character, relationships. It is huge.

The Captain and the Enemy, Graham Greene

I alaways forn Graham Greene a bit hit and miss, some of his books I have loved and others I really haven't liked. This one was good, but I thought it lacked something. The narrator is plucked out of boarding school by 'The Captain' and goes to live with The Captain's sort-of partner, to keep her company. As a young man the narrator is re-living his experience from then on and eventually goes to find the Captain. There is some intrigue, but nothing is ever very clear, this is definitely intentional on the part for Greene, but I think some engagement is lost because of it.