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cover of episode Zadie Smith looks back at her debut novel 'White Teeth' 25 years after its release

Zadie Smith looks back at her debut novel 'White Teeth' 25 years after its release

2025/4/25
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Zadie Smith: 我一直对那些试图按照宗教原则生活的人着迷，因为这需要巨大的信仰。小说探讨的是代际传承，父母试图将他们认为重要的东西传给孩子，但孩子并不总是感激。我想展现“合一”中的多样性，以及两者之间并不一定存在矛盾。我对《白牙》的读者反应感到震惊和欣慰。我认为《白牙》是一本好书，它是我最好的部分。我感觉与25年前写《白牙》的那个自己很疏远，如今的我更加平静和沉默。我很高兴《白牙》成为青少年喜欢的书籍。我年轻时写作《白牙》很天真，不明白自己正在做什么。我一直对人很感兴趣，并对他们怀有深厚的感情。我不确定我的角色是否还存在于我的意识中，但也许每个书中都有一些角色会持续存在。我可能第一次在人生中创作能量枯竭了。 Liane Hansen: (采访中提出的问题，例如关于宗教信仰、身份认同、移民等主题的问题) Rachel Martin: (采访中提出的问题，例如关于《白牙》的创作历程、作者的成长变化等问题)

Deep Dive

Chapters
This chapter introduces Zadie Smith's _White Teeth_ and its significance in literature. It highlights the novel's themes and explores its enduring relevance 25 years after its release.
  • White Teeth is a monumental novel, likely to remain relevant for many years.
  • It explores themes of immigration, race, religion, history, love, and genetics.
  • The novel is set in North London and focuses on the unlikely friendship between Archie Jones and Samad Iqbal.

Shownotes Transcript

Zadie Smith's White Teeth marked its 25th anniversary in January. The now canonical novel tells the story of an unlikely friendship between a shy Englishman named Archie Jones and his friend Samad Iqbal, a devout Bengali Muslim. Both men are trying to pass on their religious and moral beliefs to their children. In today's episode, we revisit a conversation between Smith and NPR's Liane Hansen that aired shortly after White Teeth's release. Then, we'll hear some of Smith's conversation last month on* NPR's Wild Card with Rachel Martin* in which Smith reflects on the novel's anniversary. The two discuss the author's distance from the person she was when she wrote White Teeth and the novel's place among the canon of books for teenagers.To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookofthedayLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices)NPR Privacy Policy)