In the Skin of a Lion
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In the Skin of a Lion is a novel by Michael Ondaatje. The book tells the story of Patrick, a young man from Canada, and his interactions within Toronto.
In some ways it is a coming of age story. Following the evolution of Patrick from a boy whose father "didn't teach him anything" to a young man who can act and react out of both love and grief.
The book is told in many voices, with a cubist structure and the inbuilt questioning that comes with that theory. This can be seen in the chapter about Ambrose Small's disappearance, with the use of many voices attempting to explain the disappearance.
It is also in many ways a post-colonial text, focussing on a marginalized group in society (the migrants) and centring these. The influence of those from other cultures and speaking different languages is greatly felt.
It has a preoccupation with voice and place of Toronto in the 1920s. The book focuses on the building of landmarks in Toronto most notably the building of the Bloor Street Viaduct and the R.C. Harris Filtration Plant. It also and bases itself on many true stories of the era such as the falling of the nun and the disappearance of Ambrose Small. Ondaatje spent many months in the Toronto archives and those of newspapers of the era learning about the events and character of Toronto in that time.
It can also be read as a humanist text, looking at the interactions between Patrick and other human beings and Patrick's growth as a human being. A theme throughout the book is love, a blind iguana being given as a gift at one point, with the implication that something to love is the greatest gift of all.
Ondaatje's later novel The English Patient is in part a sequel to In the Skin of a Lion, as the characters of Hana and Caravaggio appear in it.
Awards and recognition
- In the Skin of a Lion was one of the selected books in the 2002 edition of Canada Reads, championed by Steven Page. In the Skin of a Lion eventually won the competition.