Book Summary... HELP

[tightpants]

[tightpants]

Active member
Alright so for my English class we have to read On Beauty by Zadie Smith. Its like 450 pages long and I've supposed to be reading like 50 pages a night for the past week but I've been completely swamped with homework (I have finals next week and all my professors are cramming shit into this last week). So basically, I'm about 25 pages into it when i should be about 425. I've been searching all over the internet for a decent summary of the book but I can't find it (most likely because the book is really recent). Its probably a lost cause but I was just wondering if anyone knows of a website that might have a summary of this book (I already checked sparknotes and cliffsnotes and a few others). I would pay for it too so if any of you know of sites that sell summaries that would be prime. Again, its probably a long shot but I would really really appreciate it if anyone could give me any help. Thanks.
 
If you can't find a website that has a summary of it, try talking to someone that had your professor last year or last semester(if you can find one). Chances are that the course is not much different and they read the book... most professors are lazy as hell. That is your best bet.
 
Wiki article

On Beauty centres on the story of two families and their different, yet increasingly intertwined, lives. The Belsey family consists of university professor Howard, a white Englishman, his African-American wife Kiki, and their children Jerome, Zora and Levi, living in the fictional university town of Wellington, outside Boston. Howard's professional nemesis is Monty Kipps, a Trinidadian living in Britain with his wife Carlene and children Victoria and Michael.

The Belsey family has always defined itself as liberal and atheist, and Howard in particular is furious when son Jerome, a newly born-again Christian, goes to work as an intern with the ultra-conservative Christian Kipps family over his summer holidays. After a failed affair with Victoria Kipps, Jerome returns home. However, the families are brought into proximity again nine months later when the Kippses move to Wellington, and Monty begins work at the university.

Carlene and Kiki become friends despite the tensions between their families. Rivalry between Monty and Howard increases as Monty challenges the liberal attitudes of the university on issues such as affirmative action. His academic success also highlights Howard's inadequacies and failure to publish a long-awaited book. Meanwhile the Belsey family is facing problems of its own, as they deal with the fallout of Howard's affair with his colleague and family friend Claire.

Zora and Levi both become friends with Carl, an African-American man of a poorer background than their own middle-class lifestyle. Zora uses him as a posterchild for her campaign to allow talented non-students in university classes. For Levi, Carl is a source of identity, as a member of a more 'authentic' black culture than Levi considers his own background to be.
 
That would probably be the best way to go but I'm really short on time, I don't think there's any way I could track someone down by Thursday. Thanks for the help though, I'm going to try.

And to the other two posts^,

1. I already said I checked sparknotes, they don't have it.

2. The wiki article helps a bit but I was looking more for something like an in-depth summary. Thanks though, I appreciate it.
 
I'll keep looking, its hard to find specific sources so I figured I'd put that up there for a reference at least
 
Damn. I checked pinkmonkey.com, enotes.com, and bookrags.com, and none of them had anything. Thanks for the help though. I'll keep those sites in mind if I'm ever in this position again.
 
umm try sparknotes I hear they have like summaries of books or something. man you're dumb for not already looking there!
 
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