Like (novel) facts for kids
First edition with quote from Kate Atkinson
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| Author | Ali Smith |
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| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Virago (UK) Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (US) |
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Publication date
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1997 (UK),1998 (US) |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 352 |
| ISBN | 1-86049-262-2 |
Like is the very first novel written by Scottish author Ali Smith. It was first published in 1997 in the United Kingdom. The book came out a year later in the United States. This story gets many ideas from Ali Smith's own experiences. She grew up in Inverness, Scotland, and later moved to Cambridge to study.
What's the Story About?
The novel Like is told in two main parts. The first part takes place in Scotland in the present day. We meet a character named Amy Shone. She travels a lot and has just started a new job. Amy is now the caretaker of a caravan site and camping ground.
Amy lives with her daughter, Kate, who is almost eight years old. Their current life is quite simple. However, the story also gives us hints about Amy's past. She used to be a very smart student at Cambridge University.
A phone call for a job interview brings up a past friendship. Amy used to be friends with a young actress named Aisling McCarthy, also called Ash. This mention starts to clear up some of the mysteries in Amy's life.
The second part of the book is a journal. This journal was written by Amy's old friend, Aisling McCarthy. Amy's daughter, Kate, finds the journal in a box of old papers and reads it. Ash's journal tells the story of her friendship with Amy. It describes their friendship from its exciting start to its difficult end.
Ash's journal shows how different Amy and Ash were. It also uses a clever idea to compare Scotland and England. These two countries are always connected but also separate.
