In the skin of a lion (1987)
In the skin of a lion is a 1987 Dutch-language fiction book written by Michael Ondaatje.
In the Skin of a Lion is Michael Ondaatje’s sparkling predecessor to his Booker Prize-winning The English Patient. ‘A magical book. Michael Ondaatje defies the normal distinction between poet and novelist. His writing is consistently tuned to a visionary pitch’, Graham Swift It is the 1920s, and Patrick Lewis has arrived in the bustling city of Toronto, leaving behind his Canadian wilderness home. He immerses himself in the lives of the people who surround him, learning, from their stories, the history of the city itself. And he has his own adventures: searching for a missing millionaire, tunnelling beneath Lake Ontario, falling in love. Here, we encounter, for the first time, Hana the orphaned girl and Caravaggio the thief, among a large cast of characters who are all lovingly and intimately portrayed. It is an exquisite and musical novel, a romance that challenges the boundary between history and myth. ‘Ondaatje writes in curves, in time-lapses, a sort of verbal cinema whose narrative is unfaltering’, The Times ‘A triumph . . . a powerful and revelatory accomplishment’, ??????? The Times Literary Supplement Now part of the Picador Collection, a series showcasing the very best of modern literature.
Quick answers
What is In the skin of a lion about?
In the Skin of a Lion is Michael Ondaatje’s sparkling predecessor to his Booker Prize-winning The English Patient. ‘A magical book. Michael Ondaatje defies the normal distinction between poet and novelist. His writing is consistently tuned to a visionary pitch’, Graham Swift It is the 1920s, and Patrick Lewis has arrived in the bustling city of Toronto, leaving behind his Canadian wilderness home. He immerses himself in the lives of the people who surround him, learning, from their stories, the history of the city itself. And he has his own adventures: searching for a missing millionaire, tunnelling beneath Lake Ontario, falling in love. Here, we encounter, for the first time, Hana the orphaned girl and Caravaggio the thief, among a large cast of characters who are all lovingly and intimately portrayed. It is an exquisite and musical novel, a romance that challenges the boundary between history and myth. ‘Ondaatje writes in curves, in time-lapses, a sort of verbal cinema whose narrative is unfaltering’, The Times ‘A triumph . . . a powerful and revelatory accomplishment’, ??????? The Times Literary Supplement Now part of the Picador Collection, a series showcasing the very best of modern literature.
When was In the skin of a lion published?
In the skin of a lion was published in 1987.
Who made In the skin of a lion?
In the skin of a lion was written by Michael Ondaatje.