It's my first Ali Smith and I enjoyed the writing but was a bit disappointed with the rest. We follow two siblings, Rose and Briar, in some near future dystopian world, as they have been left to fend for themselves. They belong to the UVs, Unverifiables, and it isn't completely clear what that entails but not being online seems to be the main criteria. I liked the atmosphere but wished there had been more about this world; I liked the 1984 vibes through the eyes of two children, I liked the tone. I just felt the plot was a bit too hazy and it took me a while to fet into it, and I kept waiting for a bit more, and that bit more never came. I'll probably still read her other books as I really liked the writing, I just hope that the others have a bit more of a plot.

I was really drawn into the story and desperately worried for poor Briar (the protagonist). The story seems to be set in a near dystopian future where people or buildings or cars that are inhabited by those who don't conform have a red ring painted around them and are then demolished and the inhabitants taken away. Briar and her sister find their house surrounded by the red paint but escape and later their camper van has the same fate. The children are in the care of their mother's boyfriend, but their mother has gone to nurse her ailing sister and take on her work in a resort hotel at a far distance. The children find themselves alone in a strange house with some money, tinned food and told not to go outside by their mother's friend as he goes off to look for her. Of course, being young children they do go outside into the scary repressive world. I have to say I didn't really like the Quartet books but loved this. It seemed to end suddenly, so I was really happy to find out a sequel is in the works. Very interresting.

I tend to just have one book a year which I read in a day and Gliff is the book of 2024! I couldn’t put it down. Ali Smith is such a clever writer, and the story here captured me from the start and held me to the end. I am thrilled to see this is book one of a Duology - can’t wait to read more of this captivating story.

I really enjoyed this, it felt somewhat less abstract that some of Smith's previous novels. Immaculately written and thought provoking - I would definitely recommend and am impatiently awaiting her next work already.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review

I’m a long time Ali Smith fan and this is one of her better novels - comes with the ever lovely weirdness of an Ali Smith book but with a bit more of a clear plot that’s made necessary for the world building needed for a dystopian setting. Two siblings are left to fend for themselves in a near-future dystopian world not far from our own, in which centralised data collection about each citizen is collected by the government and those who refuse or otherwise disobey become unverifiables, forced into hard labour. Really enjoyed it and I’m looking forward to the companion novel Glyph which I hope will make this a more rounded story and provide more resolution.

Set in a dystopian near future, two children are left to fend for thenselves. Their mother has brought them up without devices and think for themselves, which puts them at odds with the rest of society. She is now working in a hotel, having transgressed in this digital society and her two children have been left along by her partner, who is going to find them help. They navigate the world as best they can, avoiding the dangers of being recorded, and befriending a horse they name Gliff.
This is a short novel, musing on words and language, the digital and analogue world, and how to retain our humanity and live in a quantified, digital world that is increasingly restrictive. A good and thought-provoking read.

A very thought-provoking dystopian novel set in Britain, Ali Smith has done it again. Excited for the second instalment of this duology.

Ali Smith I love you! Gliff is the first book in a duology and it’s deliciously weird. Two children, Bri & Rose come home from a trip to find their house surrounded by a circle of red paint. Their mum’s partner Leif quickly takes them away in a campervan. Overnight it too is surrounded by red paint. The siblings find themselves alone while Leif goes to get their mum.

This is all told from Bri’s perspective and has little glimpses into the future, where we ultimately end up. It is dark & dystopian but this is buoyed by the prose which is as beautiful as ever. Normally I savour an Ali Smith book but I raced through this because the plot was so engaging.

I was so utterly compelled by this and I cannot wait for the second part next year.

I used to love Ali Smith but sadly I think her style is no longer for me. I didn’t enjoy the last series of 4 seasons books and only really enjoyed the beginning of this.

Ali Smith has a way with words on a singular, a sentence and a story level that is unmatched. Though I've not read Brave New World, which many reviewers have highlighted Gliff is in conversation with, my understanding of the complex themes was not diminished. The story is compelling if a little confusing, but in a way that makes you really think about nature and ownership, data and categorisation. Apparently, there might be a second instalment, which would mitigate the openness/unresolved ending.

I love being invited into the world Ali Smith creates. Even though all her books are quite different to each other, they clearly inhabit the same imagined, almost real world where you think you know how things go until she wrong foots you and you very much don't. Gliff feels like a deep dive into this world. A future dystopia that we can almost touch from the world we inhabit now. Nowhere is explicitly 'here' but it all feels so familiar. Smith explores themes she has long been interested in and some she is increasingly angry about, the mutability of borders and yet the fierce desire to police and regulate them is both explicit in the movements of the characters through this book but also implicit in the shifting identities and genders of some of the characters. This is dystopian but also anchored in folklore and conscious of how and why myths are created. This is the first book in a duology I believe and I cannot wait to find out what happens next.

I love Ali Smith and have read most of her work. I love the Seasonal Quartet, but for some reason I didn't love this book. As ever her writing and storytelling are beautiful, witty and clever, but I just didn't understand what was going on. Maybe it's me? maybe I need to re read at some point. However it still gets a 3 star ⭐ from me as Ali Smith is one of the best writers of our time.

dystopian novel that is difficult to understand in places. It's about two children who struggle to live outside a system that they don't think they fit into.

Like most of Ali Smith’s books I will need to reread her new novel ‘Gliff’. The novel covers so many themes that I will inevitable have missed a few. For now though I can say that I loved Smiths use of language, I also loved the two main characters. I have yet to decide the significance of the horse. This is a thought provoking novel that serves as a warning to us ll.

I must admit, I was a little wary of this book. The only prior knowledge I have of Smiths work is 'Autumn' which, upon completion, I realised just wasn't a book that was written for me. I was enamoured enough by her writing and stylistic choices in the first of the seasons quarter, that I knew I wanted to try again before writing off her works as something beautifully written, but unable to connect with me. How glad I am to have made that decision.

Gliff is a captivating little book. Enigmatic and aloof, it sets itself in a dystopian future - though survival epic it is not. Like many of her works, Gliff is an ode to humanity, our differences and our similarities. It reads as an essay on identity and meaning, pushing back on prescriptive categorising of individuals and exploring what it means to simply exist.

Gliff follows two children abandoned in this 'uncertain near-future', which we experience through the eyes of Briar, the eldest of the two siblings. Smiths stream of consciousness prose lends itself beautifully to this narrative, at once capturing the naïve wonder of young children exploring the world and how they belong to it, as it belongs to them, whilst also highlighting the nonsense of Adults clamouring to classify and rank human attributes. Accordingly, the book doesn't delve into the intricacies of this 'new world' and it's rules and regulations. 'The State' remains a vague, faceless, omnipresent boogeyman, that lurks at the edge of every page. Largely, the book focuses instead on how these two children and the people around them struggle to find a sense of self in a world that seems eager to deny individuality.

I felt as though in this novel, all of Smith's beautiful wordplay, her enigmatic writing style and astute observation on human behaviour, married beautifully with the plot, which is perhaps what I felt was missing from Autumn. This book had much more substance, more footholds to grip as you get swept along in the meandering narrative. This book, was indeed written for me and I cannot wait to read it's sequel.

If you’re looking for a thought-provoking, immersive read that blends dystopian themes with deeply personal storytelling, Gliff is a must-read. And like me, you’ll likely find yourself counting down the days until Glyph is released, eager to see how the story unfolds.

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Gliff is the story of two siblings in a dystopian future which feels eerily close to our present. Ali Smith has created a mysterious future which doesn't give away many details but certainly leaves the reader thinking. This is a book which is hard to describe and is probably best to just jump in to. If you are a fan of Ali Smith, Gliff offers her usual style and is well worth the read. It is a book that will keep you thinking about it long after you have finished.

With thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy.

3.5. Better than the quartet and Companion Piece. Full of all the usual Smithian wordplay and strange humour and outsiders, but now in the future. Brave new world. Brave old world. Bravo new world. Gliff has two pages of meanings, but you'll get to that. Horses are important too (and have 'feathers'!). Identity, gender, dystopia. More linear and 'accessible' than some of her other works in that she plays games but always lets us know the rules. I'm floating around 3 or 4 stars. Not that it really matters.

Rumour has it, after being shortlisted four times but not winning, Ali Smith has asked her publisher now not to submit Gliff for the 2025 Booker. I'm not sure if this is true. A shame if it is, it feels bitter and out of character. Or she's tired and wants to turn her back on big prizes, which is understandable. Oh, and thanks to Penguin for the advance copy.

Two teens living in a society similar to ours in terms of its ills, make sense of their lives and the society via their encounters, words, and Gliff.
Smith's unique signature is oozing from every piece of this book, and if you enjoy social critique done eloquently, characters' making sense of their world, and metaphors and intertextuality, you will enjoy this book.
I have the impression that if I read it again, I will spot more levels and layers.
I feel fortunate to have read it, and looking forward to Smith's other work.

Like all of Ali Smith's novels reading this requires an effort of attention, and like all her novels this repays that attention in spades. Set in a dystopian version of society that mirrors the worst of our own, this follows two 'outsiders' living on the margins and marked out as too different.

Many topics are covered in what is a passionate critique of much of contemporary society. Ecology, authoritarianism, the gap between rich and poor, the ubiquity and dangers of technology, rigidity rather than flux and flow.

It is an excellent read and one I will return to. Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a review copy.