The Tiger's Wife
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Review
Téa Obreht is the most thrilling literary discovery in years. (Colum McCann )
Beautifully executed, haunting and lyrical, The Tiger's Wife is an ambitious novel that succeeds on all counts. It's a book you will want to read again and again. (THE INDEPENDENT )
The brilliant black comedy and matryoshka-style narrative are among the novel's great joys...Obreht has prodigious talent for storytelling and imagery (Kapka Kassabova THE GUARDIAN )
Obreht's landscape hovers half in and half out of fable - where villagers who daily risk being hoisted by landmines also fear malign spirits, tigers' brides and men who transform into bears...It's a part of the world that Obreht has made her imagination's own: raucous and strange and gorgeous and rather haunting. This is a pretty formidable first novel. Here be tigers. (Sam Leith FINANCIAL TIMES )
varied, poignant and beguilingly fantastical...The Tiger's Wife is an exciting, fast-paced and mystical novel that'll have you rushing to the end. (TIME OUT (LONDON) )
One of the most extraordinary debut novels of recent memory...A gorgeous farrago of stories in which realism collides with myth, superstition with empirical fact, and allegory with history...Obreht elides the sentimental Chagall villages that other writers have made of Eastern Europe, crafting instead something far more ambitious, and universal: an apotheosis of storytelling as a bulwark against brutality - and a balm for grief (VOGUE (USA) ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Beautifully executed, haunting and lyrical, The Tiger's Wife is an ambitious novel that succeeds on all counts. It's a book you will want to read again and again. (THE INDEPENDENT )
The brilliant black comedy and matryoshka-style narrative are among the novel's great joys...Obreht has prodigious talent for storytelling and imagery (Kapka Kassabova THE GUARDIAN )
Obreht's landscape hovers half in and half out of fable - where villagers who daily risk being hoisted by landmines also fear malign spirits, tigers' brides and men who transform into bears...It's a part of the world that Obreht has made her imagination's own: raucous and strange and gorgeous and rather haunting. This is a pretty formidable first novel. Here be tigers. (Sam Leith FINANCIAL TIMES )
varied, poignant and beguilingly fantastical...The Tiger's Wife is an exciting, fast-paced and mystical novel that'll have you rushing to the end. (TIME OUT (LONDON) )
One of the most extraordinary debut novels of recent memory...A gorgeous farrago of stories in which realism collides with myth, superstition with empirical fact, and allegory with history...Obreht elides the sentimental Chagall villages that other writers have made of Eastern Europe, crafting instead something far more ambitious, and universal: an apotheosis of storytelling as a bulwark against brutality - and a balm for grief (VOGUE (USA) ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Book Description
'Téa Obreht is the most thrilling literary discovery in years' Colum McCann (and she's only 26!)
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
130 of 138 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
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Téa Obreht's "The Tiger's Wife" comes with a fair degree of hype from the US, and largely it lives up to it, which is no small achievement. The main story is set in Yugoslavia and explores a young doctor, Natalia, seeking for the truth about her grandfather's death, while on a mission to deliver much needed medical aid to an orphanage in the war-ravaged Balkans. But what sets this book apart is the intricate weaving of reality with the myths and stories of the region. In particular there are two myths that represent a good chunk of the page count: the story of a tiger who has escaped from captivity after the World War two bombing of Belgrade and who has settled near a remote mountain village where Natalia's grandfather is growing up, and who develops a strange relationship with a deaf-mute girl who becomes known as "the tiger's wife"; and a mysterious story of the "Deathless Man" whom the grandfather encounters at various points in his life who appears to have the power to foresee others' death without being able to die himself.
Lovers of folk stories will love this combination, while those with a lack of tolerance for the more magical storytelling genre will inevitably find less appeal here. If you enjoyed Yann Martel's "Life of Pi", another tiger-featuring imaginative book, then this will be right up your street.
It's a surprisingly ambitious structure for such a young, first-time author and in most respects, she carries it off with aplomb, although I suspect that with a little more experience, some of the storytelling could have been tightened up slightly which would have enhanced the impact. At times the stories seem to drift on a bit. There were certainly times when it had me completely wrapped up in the stories but at others I found myself more admiring than loving it.
At the heart of the book are the stories and superstitions that people have, particularly about trying to make sense of death, but also of war and conflict. Both of the main folk tales involve dealing with fear and ignorance. In part these stories survive in spite of, and perhaps because of conflict, but no matter who owns the lands, the stories remain with the people. Evidence of the cultural mix is abundant in the myths themselves - one reason for the eponymous tiger's wife's ostracism from village life is that she is a Muslim in a Christian village. Yet part of the message seems to be that "you can take away our land, but you cannot take away our stories", while at the same time the conflicts themselves give rise to even more folk tales to make sense of things.
At times, Obreht writes with terrific beauty and always with a rich imagination and sense of love both to the Balkan region and in the relationship between Natalia and her grandfather, a good doctor himself who carries with him a tattered copy of "The Jungle Book". She also concentrates on the human story rather than getting dragged into the politics of the region, which is a good thing.
It's a magical and beautiful set of stories. She has the ability to describe rich lives in a few short pages, and it's here that the book positively soars. However, at times also the stories seem to take on a life of their own and would benefit from reigning in a little. I'd urge you to read this though and make up your own mind. There's no doubt though that Obreht is an exciting new talent.
Lovers of folk stories will love this combination, while those with a lack of tolerance for the more magical storytelling genre will inevitably find less appeal here. If you enjoyed Yann Martel's "Life of Pi", another tiger-featuring imaginative book, then this will be right up your street.
It's a surprisingly ambitious structure for such a young, first-time author and in most respects, she carries it off with aplomb, although I suspect that with a little more experience, some of the storytelling could have been tightened up slightly which would have enhanced the impact. At times the stories seem to drift on a bit. There were certainly times when it had me completely wrapped up in the stories but at others I found myself more admiring than loving it.
At the heart of the book are the stories and superstitions that people have, particularly about trying to make sense of death, but also of war and conflict. Both of the main folk tales involve dealing with fear and ignorance. In part these stories survive in spite of, and perhaps because of conflict, but no matter who owns the lands, the stories remain with the people. Evidence of the cultural mix is abundant in the myths themselves - one reason for the eponymous tiger's wife's ostracism from village life is that she is a Muslim in a Christian village. Yet part of the message seems to be that "you can take away our land, but you cannot take away our stories", while at the same time the conflicts themselves give rise to even more folk tales to make sense of things.
At times, Obreht writes with terrific beauty and always with a rich imagination and sense of love both to the Balkan region and in the relationship between Natalia and her grandfather, a good doctor himself who carries with him a tattered copy of "The Jungle Book". She also concentrates on the human story rather than getting dragged into the politics of the region, which is a good thing.
It's a magical and beautiful set of stories. She has the ability to describe rich lives in a few short pages, and it's here that the book positively soars. However, at times also the stories seem to take on a life of their own and would benefit from reigning in a little. I'd urge you to read this though and make up your own mind. There's no doubt though that Obreht is an exciting new talent.
44 of 50 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
If you are a devotee of folklore and magic realism, The Tiger's Wife might appeal to you, but it did nothing for me. I dutifully ploughed my way through, hoping things would pick up, but they never did. I don't doubt that Tea Obreht can write, but I found this dull and heavy handed, sinking under the weight of its own self consciousness. There was far too much back-story to the characters which had the effect of dragging things down instead of moving things forward. The histories of all the people who graced its pages; the butcher, the blacksmith, Darisa the Bear, his sister Magdalena, the tiger's wife's sister etc. etc. were over-long and overdrawn. Even as the book should have been drawing to a close we still had to endure interminable detail about people like the apothecary and blind Orlo. There was clunky symbolism; many, many unnecessary characters (what was the point of Zora?); too much clutter, and no clear line through. Although set in the former Yugoslavia there is a lack of specificity, factions are referred to as simply `the other side' so I was never really clear who was who, which didn't aid my understanding of this conflict. Of course that was deliberate but it didn't work.
Much has been written in the other reviews about the deathless man and the tiger's wife herself (of whom the author unwisely tries to conjure up a logical explanation at the end). I just felt it was all a load of hokum.
The reading group notes in the back of the book were crass. I can't imagine them stimulating any debate (Was it any good? would be my first discussion question). There was even a two page plot summary preceding them. Presumably for those who just turn up for the wine and the company and can't be bothered reading the actual book (in this case, a good plan).
Two stars might seem unfair, I've given three to much worse books but I felt entitled to some redress. After spending so many wasted evenings losing the will to live I was beginning to feel like the deathless woman. A lot of people will be rushing to buy this book since it won the Orange Prize. I would say don't bother. Go back to the short list. Read Aminatta Forna (my personal first choice), Emma Donoghue, Emma Henderson, Nicole Krauss ... all different in their own way and all more satisfying than this.
Much has been written in the other reviews about the deathless man and the tiger's wife herself (of whom the author unwisely tries to conjure up a logical explanation at the end). I just felt it was all a load of hokum.
The reading group notes in the back of the book were crass. I can't imagine them stimulating any debate (Was it any good? would be my first discussion question). There was even a two page plot summary preceding them. Presumably for those who just turn up for the wine and the company and can't be bothered reading the actual book (in this case, a good plan).
Two stars might seem unfair, I've given three to much worse books but I felt entitled to some redress. After spending so many wasted evenings losing the will to live I was beginning to feel like the deathless woman. A lot of people will be rushing to buy this book since it won the Orange Prize. I would say don't bother. Go back to the short list. Read Aminatta Forna (my personal first choice), Emma Donoghue, Emma Henderson, Nicole Krauss ... all different in their own way and all more satisfying than this.
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This novel is hugely frustrating. An ambitious and clever concept with some elements of superb storytelling, it is ultimately too baggy and disjointed to be properly engaging. The same is true of Tea Obreht's writing; some of it is hauntingly beautiful and evocative, but she is horribly prone to overblown descriptions and subclauses.
The Tiger's Wife is a natural choice for book groups, but I would urge them to avoid the suggestions for discussion at the back of my edition (a Phoenix paperback). If "Why, in Darisa's dream, were the tiger and his wife always eating heads?" is one of the most pertinent questions raised by the novel, then I really have missed something.
The Tiger's Wife is a natural choice for book groups, but I would urge them to avoid the suggestions for discussion at the back of my edition (a Phoenix paperback). If "Why, in Darisa's dream, were the tiger and his wife always eating heads?" is one of the most pertinent questions raised by the novel, then I really have missed something.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
memorable - but hard reading - and it never does all connect
I read this book over a number of weeks - and I decided I enjoyed it best when I was approaching it in a relaxed frame of mind with no particular expectations. Read more
Published 8 days ago by William Jordan
A beautiful escape!
I read this book at the turn of the year and was completely lost and embroiled in Obreht's wonderful narrative, to the extent that I've struggled to complete many other books since... Read more
Published 12 days ago by timbuckaroo
Totally delightful and full of interesting insights
I had no preconceptions about this book as I bought it just because someone at Waterstone's recommended it. Read more
Published 14 days ago by Mr. Richard Hull
Interesting but hard work
The Tigers Wife is wirtten beautifully with lots of attention to detail. It may be because I'm used to reading quite easy-to-read books but I did find it a little heavy-going for... Read more
Published 1 month ago by JJ Wilkinson
Still puzzled
I read the reviews hoping someone would explain how the themes fit together. Alas, I still can't work it out. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Ruthie T
Hats off to anyone who could understand this book
I've read a lot of difficult and challenging books, both fiction and non-fiction but this has to be up there as the most frustrating. Read more
Published 1 month ago by R. P. Sedgwick
The Tigers Wife
Disappointing. No real plot to follow. Difficult to cope with time changes. Gave an insight into the problems of living in a war torn country but I found The Cellist of Sarajevo to... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Scout
Rambling
This book was a struggle, I really did not enjoy it. The Tiger's Wife did not appear until at least half way through the book and the title could equally well be 'The Deathless... Read more
Published 1 month ago by DubaiReader
THE TIGER'S WIFE
A wonderful, magical story, I loved the way the author managed to combine folk tales alongside vivid descriptions of a country ravaged by war - quite which country (Croatia? Read more
Published 2 months ago by Petty Witter
Gave up, not worth reading
If I could give this book no stars I would. It is disjointed, turgidly written and trippy. The story doesn't hang together, it blurs reality and fantasty and I couldn't see any... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Mrs. S. Biddulph
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