Critics like to write about Smith because it allows them to sagaciously read the tea leaves of fiction and society. Amis’s new book, like the collections that preceded it, is the product of a ferocious yet sensitive mind. If Amis’s book is like hurtling down a black-diamond ski run, hers is more like a brisk day on the cross-country trails. PhotoIn the best of these pieces, however, Smith presses down hard as a cultural critic, and the rewards are outsize. How many strong books does Amis, who will be 70 next year, have left in him?

Source: New York Times January 29, 2018 18:56 UTC