In the Skin of a Lion (Magill Book Reviews)

At a glance:

In his earlier works, Michael Ondaatje embellished historical documentation with his own fictional inventions to reconstruct the legends of Billy the Kid and jazz trumpeter Buddy Bolden. In doing so, he mythologized those figures, illustrating how their extraordinary capabilities and compulsions drove them to the outskirts of conventional society.

IN THE SKIN OF A LION features a cast of characters who are similarly cursed and blessed by their unusual talents and skills. Among them are Hazen Lewis, an expert dynamiter for a logging company; Alice Gull, an actress and social activist with a murky past; Ambrose Small, a millionaire who has mysteriously disappeared; his mistress, the seductive radio actress Clara Dickens; Commissioner Harris, the moving force behind the development of Toronto’s municipal works; Nicholas Temelcoff, a Macedonian immigrant famous for his daredevilry in building the Prince Edward viaduct; and Caravaggio, a thief who trusts a dog as his only partner.

Central to the story is Hazen Lewis’ son Patrick, also an outsider. Although most of the tale follows Patrick as he eventually becomes acquainted with all the above characters, Ondaatje sometimes shifts the focal point of his narrative to detail the equally intriguing adventures of the rest of the players. Ultimately, much of the pleasure of this challenging work lies in discovering the significance of their seemingly unrelated exploits.

Bibliography

Barbour, Douglas. Michael Ondaatje. New York: Twayne, 1993. A comprehensive account of the author’s life and works, both poetry and fiction.

Cooke, John. The Influence of Painting on Five Canadian Writers: Alice Munro, Hugh Hood, Timothy Findley, Margaret Atwood, and Michael Ondaatje. Lewiston, N.Y.: Edwin Mellen Press, 1996. An interesting look at the visual arts’ effect on Ondaatje and other prominent Canadian authors.

Jewinski, Ed. Michael Ondaatje: Express Yourself Beautifully. Canadian Biography Series. Toronto: ECW Press, 1994. Follows Ontdaatje’s odyssey from his arrival in Canada in 1962 to his Booker Prize for The English Patient thirty years later. A beautifully written story and a pleasure to read.

Siemerling, Winfried. Discoveries of the Other: Alterity in the Work of Leonard Cohen, Hubert Aquin, Michael Ondaatje, and Nicole Brossard. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1994. Includes a chapter on identity issues in Ondaatje’s work and a section on oral history in In the Skin of a Lion.

Solecki, Sam, ed. Spider Blues: Essays on Michael Ondaatje. Montreal: Véhicule Press, 1985. Published before In the Skin of a Lion, this collection includes many fine essays on Ondaatje’s early work. Especially pertinent are Linda Hutcheon’s essay on Running in the Family and the editor’s interview with Ondaatje.