Moon Tiger

By: Penelope Lively

Narrated by: Nicolette McKenzie, Thomas Judd

Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

Claudia Hampton - beautiful, famous, independent, dying. But she remains defiant to the last, telling her nurses that she will write a 'history of the world...and in the process, my own'. And it is her story, from a childhood just after the First World War through the Second and beyond. 

But Claudia's life is entwined with others, and she must allow those who knew her, loved her, the chance to speak, to put across their points of view. There is Gordon, brother and adversary; Jasper, her untrustworthy lover and father of Lisa, her cool, conventional daughter; and then there is Tom, her one great love, found and lost in wartime Egypt.

©1987 Penelope Lively (P)2018 W.F. Howes Ltd

Wonderful!

Penelope lLively’s writing is just luminous,and beautifully narrated. Catching the characters just perfectly. A worthy Booker Prize winner, one of the best.

Richly evocative and poignant

One of those books where the protagonist is deeply unlikeable and in spite of this you end up loving her. Some absolutely beautiful passages and overall a richly poignant journey through one woman's life.

Superb!

‘Moon Tiger’ is one of my favourite books - a brilliant story, beautifully crafted and intelligent without being ‘difficult’. This reading of it is superb and I will listen to it many times (so moving at the end). I highly recommend this audiobook!

Compelling memoir

The style of the reading seemed dated, the cut glass accent out of a previous era, but it worked brilliantly , as it was quite in keeping with the age of the characters and era of the narrative. The final paragraph was a work of beauty ; intense observation, which reconciled the spikiness and acidity of Claudi’s personality with the beauty of nature and the passage of time and the inevitability of life going on without her. It’s about time, memory , love … a wonderful listen.

Painfully evocative

Persevere. The beginning is slow and the characters are not at first attractive. Eventually the book finds a rhythm and it becomes addictive. The descriptions fill all the senses and the people are so well written as characters of that age. My father fought in tanks in the desert but died before I was old enough to ask him about it - now I think I have some answers. Thank you, Penelope, for such a beautifully told story.

Failed to engage me.

The central character is unlikeable and the story is very bitty. There are too many lists to allow the story to flow smoothly.

So good

Loved the book, taken by surprise at its writing. Listen to it and enjoy

Superb!

I enjoyed every minute. A short, succinct novel, witty and edgy but never indulgent. I used to know fabulous bright women Claudia's generation. Penelope Lively brought their richness back to me. Full of insights on sibling competitiveness and those who know that they are indeed superior to you.

Confusing

I found it hard to follow the rambling plot, I managed to finish the book but it really wasn’t for me. Narrator did a good job.