Book Review: Cat's Eye by Margret Atwood
May. 10th, 2011 04:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
juushikaTitle: Cat's Eye
Author: Marget Atwood
Published: New York: Anchor Books, 1998 (1988)
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 464
Total Page Count: 101,354
Text Number: 290
Read Because: fan of the author, purchased used at the Corvallis Book Bin
Review: On the eve of her first retrospective gallery showing, painter Elaine Risley reflects back on her life and the troubled relationship with her childhood friends which created the woman and artist she is now. I have yet to dislike an Atwood novel and that, combined with the fact that I've loved many, is why I so often pick up her work. But between plenty to love and nothing to dislike there's still a gray area for novels I find readable, strong, but not personally as appealing or successful as the rest, and Cat's Eye is one of these. As with most Atwood novels, it's as much a feminist story as it is a personal one, but it isn't strictly a story of men's effect on women—rather, it's about sexism and gender roles in society, and how it effects women and relationships between women. However transparent the focus on these issues, they retain ambiguity and Atwood withholds personal judgement, and so the text never becomes preachy; this somewhat rare, complex, but perhaps familiar view is refreshing and rewarding. Balancing out its broadness is the specific, personal detail of Elaine's life, primarily her childhood and its lingering effects, but covering her entire life and the growth of her art. It's Elaine's art which unites the book: although perhaps artificially reflective of the figures and issues which have impacted her, its rich personal symbolism is not only fascinating, it ties together the book's two aspects and leads to a satisfying, heartfelt conclusion.
And yet—while I preferred and enjoyed this take on a feminist history, while I found Elaine's story empathetic and painfully real, and while, as always, Atwood's prose is fluid, wry, and intensely readable—Cat's Eye never quite swept me off my feet. It may be that the book runs long: it's a feminist history, a personal history, near entire and often in great detail, and while it never drags it fails to be tight, sharp, or remotely consise. It may be that the relationship between social history and personal history is more visibility delineated here than it is in some of Atwood's other novels, without being as successful or iconic as something like the blatantly feminist The Handmaid's Tale, and the effect is somewhat artless. Of course, it may just be an issue of personal taste. Whatever the reason, it made Cat's Eye a book I was glad to read but not one that I will need to revisit nor one I love, and that's perfectly fine. There are other books out there for me; meanwhile, I give this one a moderate recommendation.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
Author: Marget Atwood
Published: New York: Anchor Books, 1998 (1988)
Rating: 4 of 5
Page Count: 464
Total Page Count: 101,354
Text Number: 290
Read Because: fan of the author, purchased used at the Corvallis Book Bin
Review: On the eve of her first retrospective gallery showing, painter Elaine Risley reflects back on her life and the troubled relationship with her childhood friends which created the woman and artist she is now. I have yet to dislike an Atwood novel and that, combined with the fact that I've loved many, is why I so often pick up her work. But between plenty to love and nothing to dislike there's still a gray area for novels I find readable, strong, but not personally as appealing or successful as the rest, and Cat's Eye is one of these. As with most Atwood novels, it's as much a feminist story as it is a personal one, but it isn't strictly a story of men's effect on women—rather, it's about sexism and gender roles in society, and how it effects women and relationships between women. However transparent the focus on these issues, they retain ambiguity and Atwood withholds personal judgement, and so the text never becomes preachy; this somewhat rare, complex, but perhaps familiar view is refreshing and rewarding. Balancing out its broadness is the specific, personal detail of Elaine's life, primarily her childhood and its lingering effects, but covering her entire life and the growth of her art. It's Elaine's art which unites the book: although perhaps artificially reflective of the figures and issues which have impacted her, its rich personal symbolism is not only fascinating, it ties together the book's two aspects and leads to a satisfying, heartfelt conclusion.
And yet—while I preferred and enjoyed this take on a feminist history, while I found Elaine's story empathetic and painfully real, and while, as always, Atwood's prose is fluid, wry, and intensely readable—Cat's Eye never quite swept me off my feet. It may be that the book runs long: it's a feminist history, a personal history, near entire and often in great detail, and while it never drags it fails to be tight, sharp, or remotely consise. It may be that the relationship between social history and personal history is more visibility delineated here than it is in some of Atwood's other novels, without being as successful or iconic as something like the blatantly feminist The Handmaid's Tale, and the effect is somewhat artless. Of course, it may just be an issue of personal taste. Whatever the reason, it made Cat's Eye a book I was glad to read but not one that I will need to revisit nor one I love, and that's perfectly fine. There are other books out there for me; meanwhile, I give this one a moderate recommendation.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
