Occasionally you know that one of the writers alive at the same time as you has written the book they were born to write … Home Fire has lit a light that'll never go out; Shamsie's version of Antigone reveals the ancient tragedy we're living now

Ali Smith, Guardian, Books of the Year

A modern retelling of Antigone set among a family divided by politics, love, and radicalism. In fewer than 300 pages, it managed to do all the things I want novels to do – tell me something about the world, give me a tiny glimpse into the otherness of others, and, most of all, give me that ache of longing as I turned the last page and realised I would never meet these characters again

Tahmima Anam, Observer, Best Books of the Year

Why do some people become radicalised? It's a question I've explored with experts on-air, but perhaps fiction can provide greater insight. Kamila Shamsie's powerful novel Home Fire, inspired by Sophocles's Antigone, did just that

Martha Kearney, Observer, Best Books of the Year

I very much enjoyed and admired Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie, a politically and psychologically acute novel modelled on Sophocles's Antigone – but reworked as the story of two British Muslim sisters and their jihadist brother

Emily Wilson, New Statesman, 'Books of the Year'

I enjoyed Kamila Shamsie's Man Booker-longlisted Home Fire, which does a great job of bringing Sophocles's Antigone into the world of Skype and Isis. Shamsie's writing resonates on the human, political and lyrical plane but its topicality, tight plot and vivid characterisation also suggest a film script in the making

Melissa Benn, New Statesman, 'Books of the Year'

Seeking a template for these dark and strange days many works have modernised Greek dramas … A particularly classy example was Home Fire, in which Kamila Shamsie relocates Antigone by Sophocles to Western and Eastern capitals during the “war on terror”

Mark Lawson, New Statesman, Books of the Year 2017