Call number
FIC ATW
Collection
Genres
Publication
Bantam (1989), Edition: Reprint
Description
Cat's Eye is the story of Elaine Risley, a controversial painter who returns to Toronto, the city of her youth, for a retrospective of her art. Engulfed by vivid images of the past, she reminisces about a trio of girls who initiated her into the fierce politics of childhood and its secret world of friendship, longing, and betrayal. Elaine must come to terms with her own identity as a daughter, a lover, an artist, and a woman--but above all she must seek release from her haunting memories.
Subjects
User reviews
LibraryThing member Emrayfo
'Little girls are cute and small only to adults. To one another they are not cute. They are life-sized.'
Cat's Eye immerses the reader into the murky psychological realms of memory, perception, identity and self-esteem and on how these aspects of our inner life are affected and mediated by and
Not only a gifted writer and master of plot, Atwood is an extremely astute observer of humanity and all our foibles and predelictions. There is something revelatory in her description of everyday interactions and the evocation of the small details that fill the interstitial spaces of life. The portraits of all the main characters are deeply compelling, especially in the sections covering the period of Elaine's girlhood.
The story follows accomplished (and now middle-aged) artist Elaine Risley as she returns to Toronto, a city she abandoned many years earlier, to attend her first career retrospective. As is customary with narratives built around such reluctant homecomings, Elaine is forced to confront the ghosts of her Toronto past and the reasons she eventually fled to build a new life on the opposite coast.
Atwood's excellent tale uses this premise to explore the relatively occluded world of female bullying and peer pressure. In part what we are given is a forensic study into the (non-physical) tools of feminine violence, as acted out among young 'innocents' of primary school age. It is an eloquent exploration of the experience of being bullied from the perspective of a nine year old victim. The novel also explores how the teenager, then the young adult and finally the mature woman copes with and processes this legacy, a period of time that lies in her psyche like a lead weight. As the reader we experience this by accompanying Elaine during various stages of her life (and the different levels of psychological and emotional development attendant on these phases).
As a man I cannot confidently judge how well Atwood has captured the complicated friendships, hypocrisies, manipulations and power games between little girls and then teenage and adult women. But the picture she paints is persuasive and has the ring of authenticity. It certainly coheres with some of what I recall were my sister's experiences. And in terms of my own experiences of bullies and peer pressure as played out in the boys' corner of the playground, I am not completely unequiped to recognise the underlying gritty reality and universality of these portrayals. As a male reader I also feel that Atwood has given me one of the key things I look for in literature, which is an insight into an aspect of lived human experience that would otherwise be inaccessible to me.
'The past isn't quaint while you're in it. Only at a safe distance, later, when you can see it as décor, not as the shape your life's been squeezed into.'
The central pivot point for the whole narrative is Elaine's complicated relationship over the years with her by-turns friend, tormenter and acolyte, Cordelia; who in the end just occupies the space of a human shaped guilt-ridden memory. Cat's Eye, on one level about bullying, on another level is really about identity and the desperate, needy actions of two young girls negotiating the obstacles of growing up, wanting to belong, and trying to carve out a space for themselves in a hostile or merely indifferent world. By witnessing the dependencies and independencies that make up Elaine and Cordelia's relationship we learn that victims aren't always victims, the strong may actually be the weak and that while forgiveness may not always be forthcoming, sometimes understanding and even pity may be in the end (but probably only after it is too late). For Elaine, after all the heartache, frustration and anger has been exhausted - or maybe merely confronted and overcome - what she is left with is an empty regret and an overwhelming sense of potential robbed; of what should have become a mature friendship enriched by decades of companionship instead stolen by circumstance, selfish decisions and the vicissitudes of life. And then wonder why we held onto our pain for so long. Wonder why we let it have a disproportionate influence on our life.
In the end, Elaine discovers that friendship is important. No matter how independent and self-reliant we may become, how resilient, we still need these little alliances, these co-conspirators. Their absence can leave a gnawing gap in an otherwise full and happy life.
'But I began to think of time as having a shape, something you could see, like a series of liquid transparencies, one laid on top of another. You don't look back along time but down through it, like water. Sometimes this comes to the surface, sometimes that, sometimes nothing. Nothing goes away.'
What makes Atwood an excellent novelist is she is very easy to read while also very engaging in terms of story. She is adept at creating expectation and interest. With Cat's Eye I found it was no chore to consume a lot of pages in a single sitting. Atwood also has an excellent facility for plot and pacing. As a novelist she has a great sense for maintaining proportion between various story elements when developing the plot; something too many other authors get impatient with and therefore rush to the story's detriment.
In short, Atwood displays in this engaging book all of the skill and technique of an accomplished novelist and master of her craft who is not a dry practitioner but has a passion and need for storytelling.
Cat's Eye immerses the reader into the murky psychological realms of memory, perception, identity and self-esteem and on how these aspects of our inner life are affected and mediated by and
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through our relationships with others. Specifically, it focuses on the formative relationships we make with our peers as children and the scars we may carry with us long after the cruel games of childhood are far behind us. Not only a gifted writer and master of plot, Atwood is an extremely astute observer of humanity and all our foibles and predelictions. There is something revelatory in her description of everyday interactions and the evocation of the small details that fill the interstitial spaces of life. The portraits of all the main characters are deeply compelling, especially in the sections covering the period of Elaine's girlhood.
The story follows accomplished (and now middle-aged) artist Elaine Risley as she returns to Toronto, a city she abandoned many years earlier, to attend her first career retrospective. As is customary with narratives built around such reluctant homecomings, Elaine is forced to confront the ghosts of her Toronto past and the reasons she eventually fled to build a new life on the opposite coast.
Atwood's excellent tale uses this premise to explore the relatively occluded world of female bullying and peer pressure. In part what we are given is a forensic study into the (non-physical) tools of feminine violence, as acted out among young 'innocents' of primary school age. It is an eloquent exploration of the experience of being bullied from the perspective of a nine year old victim. The novel also explores how the teenager, then the young adult and finally the mature woman copes with and processes this legacy, a period of time that lies in her psyche like a lead weight. As the reader we experience this by accompanying Elaine during various stages of her life (and the different levels of psychological and emotional development attendant on these phases).
As a man I cannot confidently judge how well Atwood has captured the complicated friendships, hypocrisies, manipulations and power games between little girls and then teenage and adult women. But the picture she paints is persuasive and has the ring of authenticity. It certainly coheres with some of what I recall were my sister's experiences. And in terms of my own experiences of bullies and peer pressure as played out in the boys' corner of the playground, I am not completely unequiped to recognise the underlying gritty reality and universality of these portrayals. As a male reader I also feel that Atwood has given me one of the key things I look for in literature, which is an insight into an aspect of lived human experience that would otherwise be inaccessible to me.
'The past isn't quaint while you're in it. Only at a safe distance, later, when you can see it as décor, not as the shape your life's been squeezed into.'
The central pivot point for the whole narrative is Elaine's complicated relationship over the years with her by-turns friend, tormenter and acolyte, Cordelia; who in the end just occupies the space of a human shaped guilt-ridden memory. Cat's Eye, on one level about bullying, on another level is really about identity and the desperate, needy actions of two young girls negotiating the obstacles of growing up, wanting to belong, and trying to carve out a space for themselves in a hostile or merely indifferent world. By witnessing the dependencies and independencies that make up Elaine and Cordelia's relationship we learn that victims aren't always victims, the strong may actually be the weak and that while forgiveness may not always be forthcoming, sometimes understanding and even pity may be in the end (but probably only after it is too late). For Elaine, after all the heartache, frustration and anger has been exhausted - or maybe merely confronted and overcome - what she is left with is an empty regret and an overwhelming sense of potential robbed; of what should have become a mature friendship enriched by decades of companionship instead stolen by circumstance, selfish decisions and the vicissitudes of life. And then wonder why we held onto our pain for so long. Wonder why we let it have a disproportionate influence on our life.
In the end, Elaine discovers that friendship is important. No matter how independent and self-reliant we may become, how resilient, we still need these little alliances, these co-conspirators. Their absence can leave a gnawing gap in an otherwise full and happy life.
'But I began to think of time as having a shape, something you could see, like a series of liquid transparencies, one laid on top of another. You don't look back along time but down through it, like water. Sometimes this comes to the surface, sometimes that, sometimes nothing. Nothing goes away.'
What makes Atwood an excellent novelist is she is very easy to read while also very engaging in terms of story. She is adept at creating expectation and interest. With Cat's Eye I found it was no chore to consume a lot of pages in a single sitting. Atwood also has an excellent facility for plot and pacing. As a novelist she has a great sense for maintaining proportion between various story elements when developing the plot; something too many other authors get impatient with and therefore rush to the story's detriment.
In short, Atwood displays in this engaging book all of the skill and technique of an accomplished novelist and master of her craft who is not a dry practitioner but has a passion and need for storytelling.
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LibraryThing member Cait86
OK, so by now everyone knows that I am a huge Atwood fan. Cat's Eye is the fourth Atwood novel that I have read this year, so it is no surprise, I am sure, that I loved it. I don't need to spend paragraphs extolling Atwood's way with words, or her amazing ability to turn a boring moment into
Cat's Eye is about evil - about the harm that one person can do to another, and the deep psychological repercussions that result from that harm. Oh, and it's also about nine year old girls.
That's right, the evil in this story is a child. As anyone who was once a nine year old girl can tell you, girls are cruel. Adolescence is bad enough, but the ages of 8-12 can be worse. Subtle manipulation, humiliation, control - these are the tools of nine year old girls.
Atwood's heroine is Elaine, an aging artist who has returned to Toronto for a retrospective of her paintings. Elaine spent much of her youth living in Toronto, and has since escaped to Vancouver. Back in her old neighbourhood, Elaine starts to remember her past, and slowly unravels it for the reader.
Cordelia is Elaine's best friend - at least, Cordelia is supposed to be Elaine's best friend. However, along with two other girls, Grace and Carol, Cordelia torments poor nine year old Elaine, using those weapons whose usage generations of girls have perfected.
Elaine is a classic unreliable narrator. It becomes clear to the reader that she has repressed much of her past, and is only beginning to come to terms with her childhood. Interspersed with her memories are snippets of her present life - the showing of her work, an encounter with her ex-husband, and her constant preoccupation with seeing Cordelia. Over the course of the novel, the reader gets a full picture of Elaine's life, and her present character is eluminated by her past experiences.
As always, Atwood's attention to detail is extreme, and her skill at weaving together plot threads is unmatchable. Cat's Eye has a simplistic story - it is just a telling of a woman's life - but its examination of girlhood has a ring of truth. Teenagers who fill the roles of "Mean Girls" just might have been a Cordelia growing up - or an Elaine.
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something exciting - I've already done that. What I do need to talk about is this story.Cat's Eye is about evil - about the harm that one person can do to another, and the deep psychological repercussions that result from that harm. Oh, and it's also about nine year old girls.
That's right, the evil in this story is a child. As anyone who was once a nine year old girl can tell you, girls are cruel. Adolescence is bad enough, but the ages of 8-12 can be worse. Subtle manipulation, humiliation, control - these are the tools of nine year old girls.
Atwood's heroine is Elaine, an aging artist who has returned to Toronto for a retrospective of her paintings. Elaine spent much of her youth living in Toronto, and has since escaped to Vancouver. Back in her old neighbourhood, Elaine starts to remember her past, and slowly unravels it for the reader.
Cordelia is Elaine's best friend - at least, Cordelia is supposed to be Elaine's best friend. However, along with two other girls, Grace and Carol, Cordelia torments poor nine year old Elaine, using those weapons whose usage generations of girls have perfected.
Elaine is a classic unreliable narrator. It becomes clear to the reader that she has repressed much of her past, and is only beginning to come to terms with her childhood. Interspersed with her memories are snippets of her present life - the showing of her work, an encounter with her ex-husband, and her constant preoccupation with seeing Cordelia. Over the course of the novel, the reader gets a full picture of Elaine's life, and her present character is eluminated by her past experiences.
As always, Atwood's attention to detail is extreme, and her skill at weaving together plot threads is unmatchable. Cat's Eye has a simplistic story - it is just a telling of a woman's life - but its examination of girlhood has a ring of truth. Teenagers who fill the roles of "Mean Girls" just might have been a Cordelia growing up - or an Elaine.
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LibraryThing member StoutHearted
Long before there was "Mean Girls," Margaret Atwood was writing about the complexities and cruelties inherrent in young, female friendships, and how it has long-term effects. The novel's protagonist, Elaine, is a celebrated, yet controversial, painter showing off her work in a gallery. Her work
In the past, Elaine was at the mercy of what we, today, would call "frenemies": Ringleader Cordelia, and followers Grace and Carol. Elaine craved their acceptance, and was sorely taken advantage of, to the point of physical and emotional abuse. When one day the girls go too far in their torment, Elaine experiences an epiphany that will later shape her life and artwork.
The best thing about Atwood is how all her characters are developed. In Atwood novels, as in real life, there are no one-sided characters. We come to understand Cordelia a little better in her teen years, and see how Elaine is put into a position of power over her. This period of Elaine's life, too, works its way into lasting influence in the character's life and art.
This is one of my most favorite books, being extremely well written. A lot of emotion exudes from every page; women, in particular, may find that the girls' cruelty hits close to home.
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represents the turmoil locked inside her, depictions of people and events from her past. The novel continuously skips from the present to the past to show just how Elaine's girlhood remains a shadow over her adulthood.In the past, Elaine was at the mercy of what we, today, would call "frenemies": Ringleader Cordelia, and followers Grace and Carol. Elaine craved their acceptance, and was sorely taken advantage of, to the point of physical and emotional abuse. When one day the girls go too far in their torment, Elaine experiences an epiphany that will later shape her life and artwork.
The best thing about Atwood is how all her characters are developed. In Atwood novels, as in real life, there are no one-sided characters. We come to understand Cordelia a little better in her teen years, and see how Elaine is put into a position of power over her. This period of Elaine's life, too, works its way into lasting influence in the character's life and art.
This is one of my most favorite books, being extremely well written. A lot of emotion exudes from every page; women, in particular, may find that the girls' cruelty hits close to home.
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LibraryThing member HippieLunatic
Any book by Atwood can give you a glimpse into womanhood. Cat's Eye does it superbly, taking the reader from childhood, through adolescence, into adulthood and maturity, providing moments in Elaine's life that develop her, define her and often defeat her. It is one of the most beautifully
Perhaps growing up as an outsider allowed me to connect on numerous levels with Atwood's main character. Perhaps thinking of myself as a writer (though not an author) allowed me to empathize more so than other readers might be able to. But anyone with haunting memories of childhood friendships will be able to relate in some way or another, and I believe most everyone has a childhood friend that lurks in the shadows of the consciousness.
While this might not be a fit for all readers, any woman who knows that her past has colored her present will appreciate it, in my opinion. Those women who have an artistic approach to life will appreciate it even more. If you know that life's bleak moments are as meaningful as the bright, and that the pale moments tend to stick with you longer than the florescent, you'll love it as much as I did.
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depressing books I have ever read.Perhaps growing up as an outsider allowed me to connect on numerous levels with Atwood's main character. Perhaps thinking of myself as a writer (though not an author) allowed me to empathize more so than other readers might be able to. But anyone with haunting memories of childhood friendships will be able to relate in some way or another, and I believe most everyone has a childhood friend that lurks in the shadows of the consciousness.
While this might not be a fit for all readers, any woman who knows that her past has colored her present will appreciate it, in my opinion. Those women who have an artistic approach to life will appreciate it even more. If you know that life's bleak moments are as meaningful as the bright, and that the pale moments tend to stick with you longer than the florescent, you'll love it as much as I did.
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LibraryThing member KimLarae
Remarkable portrayal of the cruelty of young women, but for me the book dragged down as the artist grows into adulthood.
LibraryThing member Naberius
Recently read this again for the eighth time (re-visiting a book from time to time is like seeing an old friend, yes?). Disturbing and evocative, I especially like Atwood's descriptions of her main character's art. Like The Robber Bride, this is a book that I pick up once every so often to savor.
LibraryThing member KLmesoftly
Mesmerizing like a train wreck! Such a great portrayal of bullying between girls and the repercussions of childhood trauma.
LibraryThing member ragwaine
Too damn long, just a long character study of a character that wasn't that interesting.
LibraryThing member Marlene-NL
My Gosh I am reading 1 book a day these few past days. Just lying in bed and read read read. Yesterday I picked this book. it has been on my shelf for years and I finished it last night.
It is good but not near as good as Handmaid's tale but what i did notice that there is a lot to think about once
It is good but not near as good as Handmaid's tale but what i did notice that there is a lot to think about once
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you have read this book. There is a lot left in the air and once done it makes you wonder. I like that. Show Less
LibraryThing member chatgarou
This book got me hooked with Margaret Atwood. Bought on sale when I hadn't known anything about her, I immediately charmed by what she tells me and how she tells it. Since then I've read every book she wrote that comes in my way.
LibraryThing member marialondon
I liked this book & it really affected me emotionally while I was reading it. Its main theme- and this I think is the theme 'done' most successfully in the book- is bullying, and in particular, girls bullying other girls. Someone said it's like 'the lord of the flies' but with girls; well that's
It is a very sad book, to be honest. Elaine Risley, the Canadian painter who is the narrator of the book & the main character, never quite gets over the childhood bullying. She doesn't turn into a lifelong victim; rather, she turns into a sort of bully herself, pretty heartless at different times in her life. I found it- at times- hard to relate to the adult Elaine. But maybe it's easier to identify with a pure 'victim' (like the child Elaine was) than the much more complex, multifaceted victim / bully adult person who has emerged out of such a harrowing experience. This book teaches a lesson to all of us, one that we should try to hear, about the cruelties that children (who we often idealize) are capable of inflicting on each other.
(As a side note, and as another reviewer wrote, I too am grateful I have a boy! Girls just seem so much scarier...which is one of the main points in this novel, actually).
The other question the novel poses- and actually it's a question that Elaine herself has to deal with when preparing for her retrospective- is whether Margaret Atwood is a 'feminist author'. I think, in an essential way, she is. That is, she discusses very intelligently the life of women & girls. In this way, yes, she is a feminist author. But in a more black & white kind of way, one that would be recognizable by the vast majority of feminists, no she's not since she depicts the 'sisterhood' in a very dark, sinister way (that is though very true to life).
The novel has another very good point about it. It doesn't show Elaine triumphantly rise out of her tortuous childhhood into a mature, happy adulthood. Rather, her life is never quite happy. In fact, one thing that struck me is how distant she is (as an adult) from her parents & brother. I wonder why that was? They literally disperse in different directions once the children are adults & seem to meet very rarely. I wonder if that is something characteristic of American & Canadian life (not so common in Europe) or is it the particular family that is depicted to be distant from each other? Anyway, just something to think about...
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right. Anyone (especially us women) who has had similar experiences, of being tormented in childhood by other girls- those who supposedly are 'best friends- will be also deeply affected by this book & probably deeply saddened. It is a very sad book, to be honest. Elaine Risley, the Canadian painter who is the narrator of the book & the main character, never quite gets over the childhood bullying. She doesn't turn into a lifelong victim; rather, she turns into a sort of bully herself, pretty heartless at different times in her life. I found it- at times- hard to relate to the adult Elaine. But maybe it's easier to identify with a pure 'victim' (like the child Elaine was) than the much more complex, multifaceted victim / bully adult person who has emerged out of such a harrowing experience. This book teaches a lesson to all of us, one that we should try to hear, about the cruelties that children (who we often idealize) are capable of inflicting on each other.
(As a side note, and as another reviewer wrote, I too am grateful I have a boy! Girls just seem so much scarier...which is one of the main points in this novel, actually).
The other question the novel poses- and actually it's a question that Elaine herself has to deal with when preparing for her retrospective- is whether Margaret Atwood is a 'feminist author'. I think, in an essential way, she is. That is, she discusses very intelligently the life of women & girls. In this way, yes, she is a feminist author. But in a more black & white kind of way, one that would be recognizable by the vast majority of feminists, no she's not since she depicts the 'sisterhood' in a very dark, sinister way (that is though very true to life).
The novel has another very good point about it. It doesn't show Elaine triumphantly rise out of her tortuous childhhood into a mature, happy adulthood. Rather, her life is never quite happy. In fact, one thing that struck me is how distant she is (as an adult) from her parents & brother. I wonder why that was? They literally disperse in different directions once the children are adults & seem to meet very rarely. I wonder if that is something characteristic of American & Canadian life (not so common in Europe) or is it the particular family that is depicted to be distant from each other? Anyway, just something to think about...
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LibraryThing member writestuff
Elaine Risley, a painter, flees west to Vancouver from Toronto to escape her failed marriage and the deeply buried memories of childhood. Now facing middle age and the relentless passage of time, she returns to the city of her childhood for a retrospective of her art ... and discovers her
Margaret Atwood has constructed a deeply moving novel which spans more than forty years and explores the pain of growing up, betrayal, family connectivity, and ultimately the human ability to forgive and move forward in an uncertain world.
Cat's Eye alternates between Elaine's present and her past, juxtaposing her childhood growing up in the 40's and 50's with who she has become in a changed society. The childhood images are the strongest of the novel, painful in their reality, yet often funny as well. Elaine and her brother Steven grow up as nomads of a sort - traveling eastern Canada with their father, an entomologist and professor, and their mother who does not fit with the convention of the 40's housewife. Elaine is more comfortable in the world of boys which include her brother and his friends, and becomes somewhat of a tomboy - ignorant of the politics of girl friendships. Atwood's description of boys is spot on and humorous.
Elaine's childhood friendship with three girls - Carol, Grace and Cordelia - is painful; stunning in detail and understanding of what it means to grow up awkward and wanting to fit in. As Elaine moves uncomfortably through high school and college, then through the feminist years of the 60s and into adulthood, the reader begins to understand the present day Elaine - her fears, her joys, her relationship with her parents and the men in her life. And finally, the baggage in the guise of Cordelia, who she has carried through the years and must now come to terms with.
As with all Atwood novels, Cat's Eye is a beautifully written story full of symbolism and rich language. I found myself immersed in Elaine's life - hurting when she hurt, despairing, wishing for resolution and understanding. The book has a melancholy feel throughout most of its nearly 500 pages, and yet by the time I had finished it I felt, like Elaine, there was light in the world...and closure.
This is a book to relish, to read slowly and spend time thinking about the images. It is a novel first and foremost about women's friendships, with all the barbs and uneasiness, as well as the longing and desire to form them. It is a book about the connections we make, about past wrongs and how to right them or, when that fails, to release them. It is about being human in an often brutal world.
Highly recommended; rated 4.5.
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past.Margaret Atwood has constructed a deeply moving novel which spans more than forty years and explores the pain of growing up, betrayal, family connectivity, and ultimately the human ability to forgive and move forward in an uncertain world.
Cat's Eye alternates between Elaine's present and her past, juxtaposing her childhood growing up in the 40's and 50's with who she has become in a changed society. The childhood images are the strongest of the novel, painful in their reality, yet often funny as well. Elaine and her brother Steven grow up as nomads of a sort - traveling eastern Canada with their father, an entomologist and professor, and their mother who does not fit with the convention of the 40's housewife. Elaine is more comfortable in the world of boys which include her brother and his friends, and becomes somewhat of a tomboy - ignorant of the politics of girl friendships. Atwood's description of boys is spot on and humorous.
Elaine's childhood friendship with three girls - Carol, Grace and Cordelia - is painful; stunning in detail and understanding of what it means to grow up awkward and wanting to fit in. As Elaine moves uncomfortably through high school and college, then through the feminist years of the 60s and into adulthood, the reader begins to understand the present day Elaine - her fears, her joys, her relationship with her parents and the men in her life. And finally, the baggage in the guise of Cordelia, who she has carried through the years and must now come to terms with.
As with all Atwood novels, Cat's Eye is a beautifully written story full of symbolism and rich language. I found myself immersed in Elaine's life - hurting when she hurt, despairing, wishing for resolution and understanding. The book has a melancholy feel throughout most of its nearly 500 pages, and yet by the time I had finished it I felt, like Elaine, there was light in the world...and closure.
This is a book to relish, to read slowly and spend time thinking about the images. It is a novel first and foremost about women's friendships, with all the barbs and uneasiness, as well as the longing and desire to form them. It is a book about the connections we make, about past wrongs and how to right them or, when that fails, to release them. It is about being human in an often brutal world.
Highly recommended; rated 4.5.
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LibraryThing member wortklauberlein
In her stunning first chapters, Margaret Atwood richly paints a girl's life in the 1940s and 1950s. Her descriptions of smells evoke not just scents but emotions. I wonder though whether the book still would appeal to women not of a Certain Age. The plot didn't have the same perfect pitch of the
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descriptions, however, and toward the end I lost interest in Elaine altogether. But savor the language and dead-on descriptions of everything from marbles to manipulative mean girls. Show Less
LibraryThing member fromthecomfychair
Many of the reviewers here have rated this their favorite Atwood novel, and I would have to agree. I read it years ago, but remember wincing through the scenes of girlhood cruelty. They really brought childhood back to me. Love to reread this sometime.
LibraryThing member voracious
I have read several of Margaret Atwood's books and I have to say, few writers are able to write as eloquently and poetically as she can. "Cat's Eye" is the first of her novels that I have read which was not dystopic nor required a suspension of disbelief. Elaine is a middle-aged painter who is
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invited to attend a retrospective gallery exhibition of her work in Toronto, the city where she grew up. As she prepares for the exhibition, she is reminded of the events of her childhood including her relationships with her brother and close friends. Elaine's memories of her "friends" and their treatment of her were somewhat traumatic, and would be considered emotional abuse by today's standards. These events inspired her paintings over the years and also made her quite sucessful. This is an extremely well-written psychological narrative of a woman's life course, as subtlely influenced by the events of her childhood. I particularly enjoyed Atwood's poetic turn of phrase and the symbolic themes that repeated in various ways throughout her story. This would be a wonderful book club read due to the richness of the narrative and the timeless universal themes that are relevant to adult women. Show Less
LibraryThing member Vivl
There are enough autobiographical aspects to this story that the reader can't help wondering just where the boundary between fiction and real life is drawn: the early childhood years spent living out of tents and logging motels, following the wandering work of Atwood/Elaine Risley's forest
Margaret Atwood has said that she's actually quite happy in life, theorising that she writes less happy than she is because she feels as though there are a lot of people out there who are unhappy, and so in a way she is reflecting the wider reality. Perhaps, or perhaps it's just that uneventful coping and happiness, while lovely things to experience in life, would (for me at least) make a pretty bloomin' boring novel.
And I'm glad that she expresses the sadness, the confusion, the slow-burn of lifelong regret, guilt, anger and shame, and the fact that even being in one's 40s does NOT make one immune from the fallout of earlier pain, or less likely to experience it now. I'm not saying my entire life has been one bleak tunnel of despair (nor, indeed, is this book), but I would feel an awful freak if no artists/writers/singers talked about the kind of negative experiences I have been through and that are, to a lesser or perhaps simply a different degree, still part of my life today, just shy of my 42nd birthday.
There were so many little observations in this book that made me go "Oh. Yes. I understand. That's me, too." It made me feel slightly embarrassed (how presumptuous of me to think there could be ANY kind of connection between myself and Margaret Atwood!!) but also comfortable. If these feeling are genuinely Atwood's (and how could she describe them so pointedly, so accurately, if they never had been at some time in her life?) then I am comforted by a feeling that I am not alone in this universe with ambiguities in my past and personality that I find so difficult to forgive.
I only wish I was as observant, as capable as Atwood in figuring out WHY I feel certain things, but perhaps those parts of the novel are just her current best guesses anyway. And perhaps it's all pure fiction after all. Who knows but Atwood herself?
May I just impress upon any reader of my review that Cat's Eye is not non-stop misery. There is lovely imagery, there is affection, there are beautifully-observed characters, none of whom are necessarily entirely likeable or unlikeable -- they are just real. There are occasional wry chuckles, and even the odd giggle.
One of my favourite lines -- not really a laugh, but at my age it raised a knowing smile and acknowledgement: "This goes along with another belief of mine: that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise."
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entomologist father; the Toronto location once the family "settles down" (for most of the year at least). Then there are the adult hints: Elaine is a painter rather than a writer, but she is constantly cross-questioned in interviews about her status as a feminist ground-breaker -- a status with which she is uncomfortable. (I particularly liked Elaine's comment when a reporter asks why so many women like her work. Mustn't that be because she's a woman? She disputes this: people like a painting, and by analogy a novel, because they like it, not because the painter/writer is male or female. Indeed!)Margaret Atwood has said that she's actually quite happy in life, theorising that she writes less happy than she is because she feels as though there are a lot of people out there who are unhappy, and so in a way she is reflecting the wider reality. Perhaps, or perhaps it's just that uneventful coping and happiness, while lovely things to experience in life, would (for me at least) make a pretty bloomin' boring novel.
And I'm glad that she expresses the sadness, the confusion, the slow-burn of lifelong regret, guilt, anger and shame, and the fact that even being in one's 40s does NOT make one immune from the fallout of earlier pain, or less likely to experience it now. I'm not saying my entire life has been one bleak tunnel of despair (nor, indeed, is this book), but I would feel an awful freak if no artists/writers/singers talked about the kind of negative experiences I have been through and that are, to a lesser or perhaps simply a different degree, still part of my life today, just shy of my 42nd birthday.
There were so many little observations in this book that made me go "Oh. Yes. I understand. That's me, too." It made me feel slightly embarrassed (how presumptuous of me to think there could be ANY kind of connection between myself and Margaret Atwood!!) but also comfortable. If these feeling are genuinely Atwood's (and how could she describe them so pointedly, so accurately, if they never had been at some time in her life?) then I am comforted by a feeling that I am not alone in this universe with ambiguities in my past and personality that I find so difficult to forgive.
I only wish I was as observant, as capable as Atwood in figuring out WHY I feel certain things, but perhaps those parts of the novel are just her current best guesses anyway. And perhaps it's all pure fiction after all. Who knows but Atwood herself?
May I just impress upon any reader of my review that Cat's Eye is not non-stop misery. There is lovely imagery, there is affection, there are beautifully-observed characters, none of whom are necessarily entirely likeable or unlikeable -- they are just real. There are occasional wry chuckles, and even the odd giggle.
One of my favourite lines -- not really a laugh, but at my age it raised a knowing smile and acknowledgement: "This goes along with another belief of mine: that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise."
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LibraryThing member ursula
Cat's Eye is all about Elaine Risley and her passage through life. The opening sentences describe the structure the reader can expect from the book: "Time is not a line but a dimension, like the dimensions of space. If you can bend space you can bend time also, and if you knew enough and could move
It's a very quiet book - not that nothing happens, but they're the kinds of things that happen in ordinary lives. People are thrown together; people drift apart. Small joys touch us; larger tragedies do as well. But through all of it is Atwood's beautiful and engaging writing, and her statements of truth that sometimes sneak up on you just to connect with a thud. For me, the weakest part of the book was Elaine's time in her 20s, but it was more than made up for by the rest of the book. The parts about Elaine's early years particularly struck me, I assume because I recognized the feelings, if not the time period or specific events.
Recommended for: anyone who's ever had the uneasy feeling that they might not fit in with their friends, anyone who still smarts from remarks made years ago, people who know life is messy and complicated and sometimes hard to understand while you're living it.
Quote: "...I do of course have a real life. I sometimes have trouble believing in it, because it doesn't seem like the kind of life I could ever get away with, or deserve. This goes along with another belief of mine: that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise."
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faster than light you could travel backward and exist in two places at once." We will exist in two places at once with Elaine - in her present-day trip to Toronto for a retrospective show of her paintings, and in another kind of retrospective: that of her life, beginning at about age 6. Child-Elaine has trouble navigating the world of friendships, and Adult-Elaine feels the reverberations even many years later.It's a very quiet book - not that nothing happens, but they're the kinds of things that happen in ordinary lives. People are thrown together; people drift apart. Small joys touch us; larger tragedies do as well. But through all of it is Atwood's beautiful and engaging writing, and her statements of truth that sometimes sneak up on you just to connect with a thud. For me, the weakest part of the book was Elaine's time in her 20s, but it was more than made up for by the rest of the book. The parts about Elaine's early years particularly struck me, I assume because I recognized the feelings, if not the time period or specific events.
Recommended for: anyone who's ever had the uneasy feeling that they might not fit in with their friends, anyone who still smarts from remarks made years ago, people who know life is messy and complicated and sometimes hard to understand while you're living it.
Quote: "...I do of course have a real life. I sometimes have trouble believing in it, because it doesn't seem like the kind of life I could ever get away with, or deserve. This goes along with another belief of mine: that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise."
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LibraryThing member ZaraD.Garcia-Alvarez
To decide to enter the fictional world transposed by Atwood is to willingly expect to submerge yourself into her protagonist's psyche -- because that's the power of her work. Regardless, of how unwilling you think you may be to be drawn into her story and/or stories (I pluralize this because she
When I say strong, I'm not referring to the tone of voice or the strength of the characters themselves---though this may very well be true of them---I'm referring to the power of her narrative because the voice she writes in---this inner dialogue---is able to excavate marvellous truths with such clarity, originality, and precision.
Atwood is able to write with not only keen insight and provocative subject matter, she isn't afraid to offend you with jarring, raw imagery, language, or context. It's intentional in so far as she deliberately resists being conformed by stereotypical ideas or dogmas. What you expect to happen in novels, in how characters are meant to evolve, does not happen in the same way in Atwood's work. The rest comes from a well of either brutal honesty and truth on the part of the writer or the complete professional wizardry performed in the "magic" that Atwood creates with the written word -- or both, except there are no tricks with Atwood.
Magic denotes supernatural forces that flow out from nowhere, giving neither its master control nor credit. Atwood's artistry is magical in that she cannot be duplicated or outshone. But her manipulation of the language, her word power and passion for it, and story writing and "showing" -- not "telling" is accurately and expertly devised. It is without a doubt, mostly due to her natural, gifted, and crafted talent. And of course, her dedication to doing the work. (Trust me, she did not pay me to say these things, nor do I say them in a vain hope that she will give me her autograph after a two-day line-up at a book festival and acknowledge me as more than one of the literary cretins who hopes to one day step in her very large, very pointy, red shoes. Okay, well...maybe a little.)
And I think that's part of the reason why she's just as resented superficially on a global scale as she is worshipped -- the fact that she has been reigned as an iconic, Canadian, female writer and artist. The irony here, is that her ambition, drive, and self-confidence is what probably brought her to the iconic stratosphere, and no doubt, her natural talent as well -- but this exact kind of attention and glorification is what Atwood, I think, abhors -- and yet at the same time, on some atomic level, demands.
But this inner requirement is not her focal point -- it's not the driving force in her writing or why I think she writes. It's the natural talent that compels her. Writing, for any good writer---for any writer worthy of being acclaimed as having an ounce or more of talent---is driven by compulsion.
The words must come out. The story must be written down. There are no extravagant plans or blueprints. There is no trickery or shortcuts. There is only always, the writer, the compulsion, the muses, and the white page -- and then the actual act of writing.
A good writer need not have "good" muses or even "many" muses. A good writer need only a supersonic ear to listen to the muse he/she has chosen as well as the inner rhythm of language -- but most importantly, a "seeing" eye that understands something regular Joes also know, but cannot articulate. A good writer is a translator of universal truths. A good writer understands this instinctively. A good writer cannot be taught or bred. A good writer can only be born -- and then ruthlessly working in solitude for many hours and years to sharpen his or her 1) craft, 2) pencils, and 3) ego.
A bad writer can read many guidebooks, attend writing classes, and "feel" accomplished. A bad writer can even get published (Oh, man -- a lot of bad writers are published, which would explain the amount of bad reviews). Nevertheless, a bad writer will always be a bad writer. And it isn't a matter of opinion or even my opinion. It simply is an undeniable fact.
You cannot teach talent. You cannot imitate authenticity. You cannot counterfeit gold and expect to get your dollars' worth. A bad writer cannot impersonate good writing. You cannot be a fraud. You either have it or you don't. And if you do, then it's not a matter of luck or literary providence -- it's a matter of tenacity, 10-inch-thick skin, and of course, a great agent.
And Atwood is one of the privileged few who have "it" all. (Maybe not the 10-inch-thick skin -- writers usually don't, we simply pretend to. I suspect Atwood has had a lot of training.) But, give her credit, too. She's worked hard to climb the iconic ladder. Many writers are born with this elusive "it," but don't have the confidence or the stamina needed to create the work required to actually be recognized by both the literary community and by those outside of it.
And she's resisted the stereotype that writers -- that artists, especially female writers, require self-deprecation, dramatic illnesses (mental or physical), a man, or a manic disposition that inevitably leads to suicide or mysterious death. She's resisted this because she's alive -- and well. How about that?
So kudos to you, Atwood. Have another glass of red wine. You've heard it all before. Yes, so your stories and your characters are dark, sombre, and cynical. I've even heard from other people, that your work is "downright depressing." Damn right, it is! But it is also intelligent, poetic, stark, and dead-on. All the good words worthy of praise. All the praises for your good words.
Maybe you are, too: dark, sombre, cynical, downright depressed. But, maybe you are the one character you continually re-invent in order to shape shift into who you need to be depending on the weather or your mood (or who is critiquing or interviewing you). Maybe you re-invent yourself not only in your stories, but in order to cover your scent from public reviewers and critics, like myself, who hunt you down with pigeonholes. I get it -- I think.
Writing is the most vulnerable art available. There is no separating the divide between the writer and the work -- because there isn't one.
No, there isn't.
Not even when its said to be fiction. All good writers know that fiction---good fiction---is truth. Somewhere hidden behind commas, periods, and exhilarated exclamation points, it'll hammer you on the head. That is, if you can read. (Sorry, the literary snob is me just gave me a drop-kick.)
You either love Atwood's work or hate it. For some of you, you won't even tolerate trying to understand it. But there is no in-between, no grey area, no fence to sit on. Atwood makes you choose.
And she does so, in her novel, "Cat's Eye."
(I'd go into slight detail "about" the story, but that's what I believe inside flaps are for. Okay, okay...I'll give you a hint:
Elaine Risley.
Go out, borrow or buy the book.
Borrow or buy all her books.
Be dazzled. Be star struck.
Be jealous.
I am.
Show More
usually has more layers than one), you will have no choice to either be hypnotized or embodied by her world because the voice of her narrative is always so strong.When I say strong, I'm not referring to the tone of voice or the strength of the characters themselves---though this may very well be true of them---I'm referring to the power of her narrative because the voice she writes in---this inner dialogue---is able to excavate marvellous truths with such clarity, originality, and precision.
Atwood is able to write with not only keen insight and provocative subject matter, she isn't afraid to offend you with jarring, raw imagery, language, or context. It's intentional in so far as she deliberately resists being conformed by stereotypical ideas or dogmas. What you expect to happen in novels, in how characters are meant to evolve, does not happen in the same way in Atwood's work. The rest comes from a well of either brutal honesty and truth on the part of the writer or the complete professional wizardry performed in the "magic" that Atwood creates with the written word -- or both, except there are no tricks with Atwood.
Magic denotes supernatural forces that flow out from nowhere, giving neither its master control nor credit. Atwood's artistry is magical in that she cannot be duplicated or outshone. But her manipulation of the language, her word power and passion for it, and story writing and "showing" -- not "telling" is accurately and expertly devised. It is without a doubt, mostly due to her natural, gifted, and crafted talent. And of course, her dedication to doing the work. (Trust me, she did not pay me to say these things, nor do I say them in a vain hope that she will give me her autograph after a two-day line-up at a book festival and acknowledge me as more than one of the literary cretins who hopes to one day step in her very large, very pointy, red shoes. Okay, well...maybe a little.)
And I think that's part of the reason why she's just as resented superficially on a global scale as she is worshipped -- the fact that she has been reigned as an iconic, Canadian, female writer and artist. The irony here, is that her ambition, drive, and self-confidence is what probably brought her to the iconic stratosphere, and no doubt, her natural talent as well -- but this exact kind of attention and glorification is what Atwood, I think, abhors -- and yet at the same time, on some atomic level, demands.
But this inner requirement is not her focal point -- it's not the driving force in her writing or why I think she writes. It's the natural talent that compels her. Writing, for any good writer---for any writer worthy of being acclaimed as having an ounce or more of talent---is driven by compulsion.
The words must come out. The story must be written down. There are no extravagant plans or blueprints. There is no trickery or shortcuts. There is only always, the writer, the compulsion, the muses, and the white page -- and then the actual act of writing.
A good writer need not have "good" muses or even "many" muses. A good writer need only a supersonic ear to listen to the muse he/she has chosen as well as the inner rhythm of language -- but most importantly, a "seeing" eye that understands something regular Joes also know, but cannot articulate. A good writer is a translator of universal truths. A good writer understands this instinctively. A good writer cannot be taught or bred. A good writer can only be born -- and then ruthlessly working in solitude for many hours and years to sharpen his or her 1) craft, 2) pencils, and 3) ego.
A bad writer can read many guidebooks, attend writing classes, and "feel" accomplished. A bad writer can even get published (Oh, man -- a lot of bad writers are published, which would explain the amount of bad reviews). Nevertheless, a bad writer will always be a bad writer. And it isn't a matter of opinion or even my opinion. It simply is an undeniable fact.
You cannot teach talent. You cannot imitate authenticity. You cannot counterfeit gold and expect to get your dollars' worth. A bad writer cannot impersonate good writing. You cannot be a fraud. You either have it or you don't. And if you do, then it's not a matter of luck or literary providence -- it's a matter of tenacity, 10-inch-thick skin, and of course, a great agent.
And Atwood is one of the privileged few who have "it" all. (Maybe not the 10-inch-thick skin -- writers usually don't, we simply pretend to. I suspect Atwood has had a lot of training.) But, give her credit, too. She's worked hard to climb the iconic ladder. Many writers are born with this elusive "it," but don't have the confidence or the stamina needed to create the work required to actually be recognized by both the literary community and by those outside of it.
And she's resisted the stereotype that writers -- that artists, especially female writers, require self-deprecation, dramatic illnesses (mental or physical), a man, or a manic disposition that inevitably leads to suicide or mysterious death. She's resisted this because she's alive -- and well. How about that?
So kudos to you, Atwood. Have another glass of red wine. You've heard it all before. Yes, so your stories and your characters are dark, sombre, and cynical. I've even heard from other people, that your work is "downright depressing." Damn right, it is! But it is also intelligent, poetic, stark, and dead-on. All the good words worthy of praise. All the praises for your good words.
Maybe you are, too: dark, sombre, cynical, downright depressed. But, maybe you are the one character you continually re-invent in order to shape shift into who you need to be depending on the weather or your mood (or who is critiquing or interviewing you). Maybe you re-invent yourself not only in your stories, but in order to cover your scent from public reviewers and critics, like myself, who hunt you down with pigeonholes. I get it -- I think.
Writing is the most vulnerable art available. There is no separating the divide between the writer and the work -- because there isn't one.
No, there isn't.
Not even when its said to be fiction. All good writers know that fiction---good fiction---is truth. Somewhere hidden behind commas, periods, and exhilarated exclamation points, it'll hammer you on the head. That is, if you can read. (Sorry, the literary snob is me just gave me a drop-kick.)
You either love Atwood's work or hate it. For some of you, you won't even tolerate trying to understand it. But there is no in-between, no grey area, no fence to sit on. Atwood makes you choose.
And she does so, in her novel, "Cat's Eye."
(I'd go into slight detail "about" the story, but that's what I believe inside flaps are for. Okay, okay...I'll give you a hint:
Elaine Risley.
Go out, borrow or buy the book.
Borrow or buy all her books.
Be dazzled. Be star struck.
Be jealous.
I am.
Show Less
LibraryThing member amelish
I read Cat's Eye when I was 15 and decided Margaret Atwood was strange because she's Canadian, not because she's Margaret Atwood.
LibraryThing member flywithme
After reading The Handmaid's Tale, I set out to have all of Atwood's books... but so far haven't sat down to actually read any others... until now.
Atwood writes the story of Elaine, who is doing an art retrospective back in the town where she spent most of her young life from age seven (or so) on.
It truly is amazing how the mind works to protect itself. Through the story, we see many defense mechanisms Elaine put into place just to get through all the struggles and live as contently as possible.
When the book was nearing the end, I almost stopped reading... not because it wasn't good, but because I didn't want the world I've come to know to end. Atwood expertly creates this world (which seems quite paralleled to her own life in aspects) and the characters become more than just words on the paper.
While I loved this book, I did find that the ending was lacking. I wanted more than what I received.
CAUTIONARY NOTE: This book deals with suicide (attempts, thoughts) in a couple places.
Atwood writes the story of Elaine, who is doing an art retrospective back in the town where she spent most of her young life from age seven (or so) on.
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The visit takes Elaine (and the reader) back into her childhood where she recalls moving from place to place before settling down in Toronto and remembers and is haunted by a childhood and adolescence of emotional torture from her 'best friends.' The story is told mostly in flashbacks, coming closer and closer to the present-day. (Intermixed, however, is the current goings-ons.)It truly is amazing how the mind works to protect itself. Through the story, we see many defense mechanisms Elaine put into place just to get through all the struggles and live as contently as possible.
When the book was nearing the end, I almost stopped reading... not because it wasn't good, but because I didn't want the world I've come to know to end. Atwood expertly creates this world (which seems quite paralleled to her own life in aspects) and the characters become more than just words on the paper.
While I loved this book, I did find that the ending was lacking. I wanted more than what I received.
CAUTIONARY NOTE: This book deals with suicide (attempts, thoughts) in a couple places.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Wuzzlicious
A slow, but satisfying read. This book ambles through the life of a woman who seems lost. You get the feeling that she's misplaced her identity somewhere along life's path and she's still searching for it through the memories of her childhood. The scenes of the torment her girlhood friends
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inflicted on her were touching and a reminder of how truly cruel children can be. Show Less
LibraryThing member knittingchick
This book is among my favorite fiction works. The cruelty and head games Elaine Risley (the main character) endured at the hands of her school mates was vividly and shockingly true-to-life. So much so, that it's easy to forget this is a work of fiction.
The story is told from the perspective of an
Being back in Toronto floods her with memories of her childhood. Throughout the book we are shown both her history with her schoolmate Cordelia, and her seemingly incongruent desire to see Cordelia once again. This is the only Atwood book which drew me in so deeply, due to the realism of human nature, and the long-term aftermath of being on the receiving end of childhood bullying.
The story is told from the perspective of an
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adult Elaine who returns to the city in which she grew up for an art show retrospective of her paintings. Being back in Toronto floods her with memories of her childhood. Throughout the book we are shown both her history with her schoolmate Cordelia, and her seemingly incongruent desire to see Cordelia once again. This is the only Atwood book which drew me in so deeply, due to the realism of human nature, and the long-term aftermath of being on the receiving end of childhood bullying.
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LibraryThing member ntempest
Atwood has such a great memory for the way children treat each other. So much of the flashbacks in this book were hauntingly familiar, and as one of those book-worm type children who was often taunted and picked on, I really clicked with these characters. It helps that Atwood spoke at my college
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the year this was released; I'm such a sucker for hearing the work read aloud by the author. Never fails to make an impression, even the bad readers, and Atwood is certainly not one of those. Show Less
LibraryThing member kaelirenee
Every time I read this book, I think "God, I'm glad I had a boy." It's so easy to see nips of my life, and everyone I've known's lives, somewhere in this book, which I think is part of Atwood's genius.
LibraryThing member land_mammal
This and Lady Oracle are my favorite Atwood novels, even though they're not her most popular. Cat's Eye is beautifully written -- while reading it I found myself reading the occasional sentence over and over, wishing I could have been a fly on the wall watching Atwood write it, just to see what
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it's like to write something that perfect. Show Less
Awards
Booker Prize (Longlist — 1989)
Governor General's Literary Award (Finalist — 1988)
Toronto Book Award (Winner — 1989)
Notable Books List (1990)
ISBN
0553282476 / 9780553282474