Origins & Early Life

Zadie Smith (born Sadie Smith; 25 October 1975) is an English novelist, essayist, and short-story writer. Her debut novel, White Teeth, published in 2000, was an immediate best-seller and won a number of awards. Smith became a tenured professor in the Creative Writing faculty of New York University in September 2010. Zadie Smith was born on 25 October 1975 in Willesden, north-west London, to a Jamaican mother, Yvonne Bailey, and an English father, Harvey Smith, who was 30 years his wife's senior.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

At the age of 14, she changed her name from Sadie to Zadie. Smith's mother grew up in Jamaica and emigrated to England in 1969. Smith's parents divorced when she was a teenager. She has a half-sister, a half-brother, and two younger brothers (one is the rapper and stand-up comedian Doc Brown, and the other is the rapper Luc Skyz). As a child, Smith was fond of tap dancing, and in her teenage years, she considered a career in musical theatre.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

While at university, she earned money as a jazz singer, and wanted to become a journalist. Smith attended the local schools, Malorees Junior School and Hampstead School, followed by the University of Cambridge where she studied...

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