White Teeth at 25

Twenty-five years...

I must admit that I was in a bit of a daze when I left the bookstore and had the idea in my head that it had been twenty-five years since this particular tome had been published. But there it was, clear as day on the cover of the new hardback edition from Penguin:

Twenty-five years...

I do not want to write a review of the book, per se. There have been plenty of reviews, studies, awards and buckets of praise shared, spilled and posted over the last quarter century on Zadie Smith's debut, and what I would still argue is her best book. Yes, I have read many of the others: The Autograph Man, On Beauty, NW, Swing Time (got mine autographed), Changing My Mind, Intimations...and whatever comes next.

Yes, I am still a fan. I may continue to be one for the next twenty-five years at this rate. I was an English instructor living overseas when I discovered the book at a very odd secondhand bookstore (it worked on a monetary point system where you earned money against purchases towards your next book; a much more successful system of bartering than I have made clear here). I was looking for something that would take me out of the work routine I found myself in, but there was very little on the shelves that stood out. And that is why I found myself picking up a very interesting and well-read copy of a book with praise from none other than Salman Rushdie ('It has bite').

I read it once, and then put it away on my own shelf. And then I picked it up again, and re-read it. And then I carried it with me wherever I went for almost a full year. And then I had to put it away because I knew I had a problem...

Again, I am not sure why the addiction took. Maybe because she had a level of focus and control in the work that I was attempting and failing to handle in my own writing. Maybe because the book seemed to contain both essayistic studies of characters and moments along with moments of real heart and soul. Maybe I was just jealous that I had not got there first, and realized that I may never get there...

And am I jealous? No, not today. I realize as I look back on what I have achieved that I am on the right road. It would be very hard for a Canadian to write such a book at this moment of history without accusations of appropriation of various voices, insensitivity towards religious differences (any novel that includes a militant religious group that acronymizes to the name 'KEVIN' is going to provoke a lot of anger in people who cannot take a joke), scientific abuse and crosscultural sexual relationships. We have a mix of cultures without any of the deep cross pollinization of ideas necessary for such a book. Sad, but true.

So, late in the evening, early in this century, I am forced to sit back and admire a tome by one of the best writers of the last twenty-five years, and consider what I want to get done with my own work...

Go on my son!

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You can find more poems, stories, and articles by Kendall Defoe on my Vocal profile. I complain, argue, provoke and create...just like everybody else.

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