“Children are not like us. They are beings apart: impenetrable, unapproachable. They inhabit not our world but a world we have lost and can never recover. We do not remember childhood -- we imagine it. We search for it, in vain, through layers of obscuring dust, and recover some bedraggled shreds of what we think it was. And all the while the inhabitants of this world are among us, like aborigines, like Minoans, people from elsewhere safe in their own time-capsule.”
In Moon Tiger, we follow a very sick and dying Claudia who wants to "write a history of the world" and does so by telling us about various experiences in her life. Claudia is very intelligent and witty, but also very unlikeable. She is unapologetically herself, which makes her hard to put up with. People either fear or love her, or simply dislike her.
Claudia details some very interesting events in her life- war and love and family relationships. There is a specific relationship that is rather concerning and shocking, to say the least, as I simply did not see it coming. I'm not sure how much value that aspect added to the entire story either.
Even though this story focuses a lot on her love and life, it also highlights a love of language and the power it can have over people and the world.
“Language tethers us to the world; without it we spin like atoms.”
This novel portrays time and perspective in a clever and interesting way. Even though Claudia sets out to write a history of the world, it is really her own personal history, with stories of love, war and familial relationships that are told in an immersive and introspective manner. The execution of this was brilliant, and Lively's writing is sharp and compelling.
“Time and the universe lie around in our minds. We are sleeping histories of the world.”
I love how quotable this book is. There are profound messages in even the simplest of things that I wouldn't have thought too deeply about prior to reading this book.
“Giving presents is one of the most possessive things we do, did you realize that? It's the way we keep a hold on other people. Plant ourselves in their lives.”
One aspect of this novel I loved reading about was Claudia's relationship with her daughter, Lisa. She isn't the most emotionally invested mother, and she makes it clear that she knows that and has no interest to be that kind of parent. She has an interesting take on motherhood generally, and I while found her thoughts to be a bit harsh, I also thought they were honest and powerful.
“What I could offer Lisa was not the conventional haven of maternal love and concern but my mind and my energy. If she had not acquired these genetically then I was quite prepared to show her how to think and act. I was no good at kissing away tears or telling bedtime stories – any mother can do that: my uses were potentially far more significant.”
I really enjoyed reading this novel. The writing blew me away and the narrative style is unique.
This book won the Booker Prize in 1987 and is a part of my Booker Prize Winners reading challenge.
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