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Cat's Eye |  | Author: Margaret Atwood
Creator: Kate Nelligan
Publisher: Random House Audiobooks
Category: Book
Buy Used: £8.00
as of 29/7/2010 14:31 MDT details
Seller: PEAR
Rating:  26 reviews
Sales Rank: 481009
Format: Abridged, Audiobook
Media: Audio Cassette
Edition: Abridged edition
Number Of Items: 2
ISBN: 185686085X
EAN: 9781856860857
ASIN: 185686085X
Publication Date: September 25, 1992
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
Margaret Atwood charts the psychological process of memory as compulsion and memory as a healing act through the character of Elaine Risley, an artist who returns to her home town of Toronto for a retrospective of her work. Elaine's visit triggers thoughts of her childhood with all the urgency of a bad rash. Dominating her reflections are her childhood "friends", three girls who wreak havoc on Elaine's self-esteem. Having spent her early childhood on the road with an entomologist father, a less than traditional mother and a brother more concerned with snot and snakes than the intricate behaviour codes of girls, the young Elaine is vulnerable to the indirect aggression of Cordelia, the ringleader of the group who seeks to improve her. Through Elaine's experiences, Margaret Atwood turns a keen and ironic eye on the training of females in North American culture: "All I have to do is sit on the floor and cut frying pans out of the Eaton's Catalogue with embroidery scissors, and say I've done it badly." The self-effacement of these girl-children barely masks a need for power that erupts all too often in cruel forms of play. This is a story in which the lines between victims and oppressors blur, in which forgiveness becomes an act of gaining power. Through humour, pain and insight, she makes us see, with surprise and recognition, details from childhood we may well have forgotten. --Chris Kellett, From 500 Great Books by Women
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 26
 Paint Drying is infinitely more entertaining! February 1, 2010
ACT
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I bought this book, partially based on the reviews however I wish now I had paid more attention to "A Customer" who was similarly unimpressed. Another person did commment on this particular reviewer's young age implying that they have no experience and are therefore not qualified to comment. I believe we are all entitled to our own opinion. For my own part (for the record I have a very wide-ranging taste, am middle-aged and degree qualified) I couldn't wait to get to the end - not because I was enjoying it so much but because I found it so incredibly slow and boring - but I refuse to let any book "beat" me! I easily read a book in a day (time permitting) but ploughed on with this for 10 days. Thank God its over. I was drawn to the book having suffered bullying myself in the past and also because I had previously read Atwood's "Alias Grace" which I found slow to begin with, however it picked up pace and I enjoyed it overall. "Cat's Eye" I felt never really got going, didn't have a satisfying plot, was somewhat nostalgic (Great, if you're Canadian) and didn't explain Cordelia's actions other than a couple of lines towards the end to say that she was projecting her own feelings onto Elaine. I was convinced that she must have been abused by someone within her family, but this idea wasn't addressed, nor was the reason for her having been in the Asylum explored. I found Elaine dull as ditchwater: the book should have been about Cordelia who, in my opinion, was a far more complex and interesting character.
 Dazzling October 23, 2009
Wizteria (UK)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
'Cat's Eye' is the sort of book that keeps coming back to you in different situations in your own life.
This is a book to savour, a book to read and re-read.
Gorgeous October 21, 2009
L. R. Richardson (Scotland)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
"War is what happens when language fails."
"Another belief of mine; that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise."
Margaret Atwood is one of my favorite authors of all time. Her prose comes across as effortless, she weaves fascinating stories with realistic characters and motifs flawlessly, and she's simply a joy to read. At times I dislike reading her, simply because she's such a wonderful writer it makes me feel absolutely wretched about my own tentative scratchings.
This book is about the life of a girl, Eileen, and follows her life from childhood at the tail end of WWII until a painting restrospective she has in Toronto as a near-middle-aged woman. At first, it seems to be a meandering tale merely about this person's life. But gradually the themes become clear. As a child, Eileen is emotionally and at times physically abused by her two or three best friends. Cordelia is the ringmaster of the group, yet they remain friends in high school. Cordelia and Eileen are dramatic foils--they may initially seem different, but they are far more alike in the end. Many other themes are explored in this novel--the nature of love and marriage, connections between people, terrorism is explored briefly, all sprinkled with interesting historical tidbits and biology and astronomy lessons. It was a lovely read, as Margaret Atwood's books always are.
 Value for money May 1, 2009
M. M. Broderick (Surrey England UK)
0 out of 4 found this review helpful
Arrived promptly and was fit for purpose. Not in good enough condition to keep but ok as a book club read.
 Excellent insight into psychological bullying November 22, 2008
BookWorm (UK)
Atwood is without doubt one of the finest modern writers, and her prose never fails to disappoint. This is a story that will strike a chord with anyone who has been bullied as a child, giving an insight into the torment of psychological bullying which is painful to read but brilliant in its execution.
I found the first part of the book, which focuses on the young childhood of the narrator, to be the strongest. The latter part of the book, covering her adult life, was there to mark time until she arrived at the 'present' of the narration, and as such didn't hold my attention as much.
The depiction of the behaviour of young girls is one of the best I have found, and even in the later sections where the plot is weaker, the writing is good enough to keep it enjoyable.
Whilst I wouldn't say this is Atwood's best work, it is still a very good read and, I think, would be both painful and cathartic to those who have suffered from bullying.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 26
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