The Cat's Table, Michael Ondaatje

I was really looking forward to this book, and I was not disappointed. I think it was much better than The English Patient, one of Ondaatje's other books. Though he won a Booker prize for The English Patient, in my opinion, it was confusing and strange. The Cat's Table was much better. Michael, an eleven year old boy, sets out from Colombo in a ship heading for England. He is assigned to sit at the "cat's table", the table farthest from the captain. There, he meets a strange cast of characters, and he tumbles from one adventure to another. Doesn't that just sound like a fascinating and wonderful plot? And it was, too. I loved the story and Ondaatje's writing style in this book. And he has such great characters.
Read The Cat's Table:

• if you are interested in Sri Lanka and/or Britain
• if you are interested in adolescent stories
• or if you're looking for an amazing, thought-provoking read

 265 pages, 5 stars.