Cat's Eye

By: Margaret Atwood

Narrated by: Kimberly Farr

Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

A breathtaking novel of a woman grappling with the tangled knot of her life—from the bestselling author of The Handmaid's Tale and The Testaments

Disturbing, humorous, and compassionate, Cat’s Eye is the story of Elaine Risley, a controversial painter who returns to Toronto, the city of her youth, for a retrospective of her art. Engulfed by vivid images of the past, she reminisces about a trio of girls who initiated her into the the fierce politics of childhood and its secret world of friendship, longing, and betrayal. Elaine must come to terms with her own identity as a daughter, a lover, an artist, and a woman—but above all she must seek release form her haunting memories.

©1989 Margaret Atwood (P)2011 Random House

Critic reviews

1989, Booker Prize, Nominated

"Stunning...Atwood conceives Elaine with a poet's transforming fire; and delivers her to us that way, a flame inside an icicle." (Los Angeles Times)

"Nightmarish, evocative, heartbreaking." (The New York Times Book Review)

Childish narration

The narrator was fine except for her changing her voice quite unsuccessfully for different characters. It was eye rolling and really took away from the story.

Great book, but....

One of my favorite all time fictional works. I read this first in a college lit class and I've read it once a year ever since. The story is hauntingly beautiful and has resonated with me at every age (I am now 44). Elaine's journey of self-exploration and her ability to finally understand and shed her childhood is both heartfelt and compelling. When I found it in audio, I was irrationally excited! Unfortunately, my favorite audio rendition has been discontinued. Kim Farr's version does not do the book justice. The best audio version is by Barbara Caruso and can only be found on Learn-Out-Loud. I'd pay Audible any price to own the Barbara Caruso version. Do yourself a favorite and read it the first time and then explore the audio options.

Best Atwood

One of her best, up there with Hag Seed, Blind Assassin, and The Robber Bride. Would be an awesome movie

The Work of Reading This is Rewarded

Once again, this author writes prose that compares to none, as she lives a life’s journey of vulnerability and awe. It is a remarkable life artfully described.

I LOVED this book

So different to me than some of her others, but maybe my favorite of all

Narration perfect for Atwood's writing

Narrator was perfect letting the story and the words carry themselves throughout this amazing piece of work by Atwood

The Best Book

I have never listened to such an amazing book. I am astounded by how intricate, yet cynical Elaine is. How the narrator encapsulates the essence of her as she grows, it’s perfect. It’s beautiful.

For Baby Boomers

Once I got into the rhythm of the memories and the plot line developed the underlying messages were totally relatable. I feel that this story would not be of interest to younger people due to the timeline. I look forward to waiting a year or two and reading it again. LOL I will forget most of it and it will be a new story ;)

I listened to the whole thing

and kept waiting for it to get better. I enjoyed the artist posts but the story was rather lackluster and looking.

Enjoyable on every level

Atwood at her best. Compelling story, multifaceted characters, beautiful writing. The narrator was exactly what I thought Elaine would sound like.