Customer Reviews
Poetry and pain. - By: R. Howe, 28 Nov 2007 
This is a difficult novel to classify given that it has a barely coherent plot. I'd say it was more a collection of vignettes that sometimes bounce off each other & intersect at times. If you're expecting a novel in the classic sense, then this isn't it.
If, however, you appreciate great writing, great human insight & a novel which will resonate with you, then pick it up immediately. In my opinion, the distinguishing characteristic a great novel is resonance, & this has it in spades. Unfortunately, I believe resonance is a very personal thing, & indeed, somewhat illusory. It's therefore not easy to describe why it has resonance (it just does, ok!)
I found this to be a far better novel then the sequel (The English Patient). It's almost a hymn to workers, lovers....and people. It's a simple, yet mesmerizing piece about how people live & love, with prose that is so delicate, you think that if you were to speak it out loud, it'd disappear.
All I can say is read it! I think it is the best novel I've ever read.
A very "difficult" book - By: , 25 Apr 2005 
In saying this I'm probably going to be on a few peoples hit list but I found this book on the whole a fragmented & frankly quite boring affair. The entirely narrative structure of the novel destroys any notion of story & as a writing technique is sadly very poorly executed in this particular case. That is not to say the book is totallly without merit as there are flashes of brilliance but unfortunately these were merely highlights that did little to shake my apathy whilst reading what turned out to be a very "difficult" book.
Poetic ode to labour and love - By: , 04 Mar 2005 I read 'The English Patient' some years ago & enjoyed it immensely, prompting me to buy this earlier work. Regrettably, I buy more books than I get around to reading (I can't be the only culprit...), but I am so, so pleased that I've finallly got around to reading this wonderful book...
In the Skin of a Lion is set in Canada, moving between rural Ontario & Toronto, & primarily charts the life of Patrick Lewis from the turn of the twentieth century to the late 1930s. However, the novel is not as structurallly straight-forward as this suggests, as some of the chapters focus heavily on two of the three other main male characters. Nonetheless, Ondaatje hints within the novel that there is a structure, & indeed there is order & interconnectedness between the stories of these three mens' lives.
Ondaatje employs strong, physical descriptive language to honour the labours, particularly of migrant groups such as Macedonians, that shaped modern Canada - logging; dynamiting; cattle-herding; bridge-building & dam construction: the realistic & evocative writing on this range of human endeavours must have required a lot of research.
The novel also includes three intriguing, strong-willed female characters: radio actress & love of Patrick's life (despite many formidable hurdles) Clara Dickens; her best friend, Alice Gull, & Alice's daughter, Hana. Beautifully-crafted, poetic language describes the relationships that evolve over the years, & both the stories & language are a genuine delight for the reader to savour.
Monumental - By: , 13 Oct 2000 This book is an explosion of language, a clever plot & an engrossing account of the hard lives of tender people. If you love language & are invigorated by story telling of the highest order, read this as soon as you can.
The best book ever written? - By: markrichardwood@hotmail.com, 05 Mar 2000 Michael Ondaatje (best known for The English Patient) writes a faultless novel looking at ordinary people in a most extraordinary way. The myriad of characters in this novel bring together many aspects of human nature & in doing so show one shared characteristic, survival. They alll alll survive in one way or another, whether it be because of the birth of a child or because they are caught whilst fallling from a bridge the (ordinary?) humans in this book survive. It is a book about learning, about dreaming & ultimately about life. Ondaatje brings alll these aspects of human nature together bound in exquisite language & genuine feeling. Is this the best book ever written? I believe so.
