The Accidental

3.4 avg 14081 votes

About this book

The Accidental is a 2005 novel by Scottish author Ali Smith. It follows a middle-class English family who are visited by an uninvited guest, Amber, while they are on holiday in a small village in Norfolk. Amber's arrival has a profound effect on all the family members. Eventually she is cast out the house by the mother, Eve. But the consequences of her appearance continue even after the family has returned home to London. The novel was shortlisted for the Orange Prize, the Man Booker Prize and James Tait Black Memorial Prize, and it won the Whitbread Award.

3.4 ★★★☆☆ average of 3 sources · 14081 votes
Open Library 4.0 6
Goodreads 3.4 14081
Apple Books 4.0 11

Reader Profile

Enjoyment67Difficulty60Influence46Popularity46Classic21

3.4/5 · 14081 readers · 312 pages · ≈ 5 h 47 m · Moderate

How long does it take to read The Accidental?

About ≈ 5 h 47 m — 312 pages, assuming roughly 250 words per page at 225 words per minute.Typical novel≈ 5 h 56 mThe Accidental~5 h 47 m

How many pages is The Accidental?

312 pages in its most-read edition.Typical novel320The Accidental312

What genre is The Accidental?

It sits on the Fiction shelves.

Is The Accidental in the public domain?

No — it is still under copyright.

Who wrote The Accidental?

Ali Smith.

The Accidental ★ 3.4 · 3 sources Check price →