Cat's Eye

Cat’s Eye is a 1988 coming-of-age novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood that centers on Elaine Risley, a successful painter who is returning to Toronto for a retrospective show of her work. Throughout the novel, she has vivid recollections of her childhood and adolescence in the city during the postwar years—particularly of her friendship with Cordelia, who persecuted her in a way that had an indelible impact on her life. The novel was a finalist for the 1988 Governor General’s Award and the 1989 Booker Prize. This guide refers to the 1989 Seal Books edition of the novel.

Content Warning: Cat’s Eye and this guide contain references to bullying, abuse, self-harm, suicidal ideation, and illegal abortion.

Plot Summary

Elaine is a successful painter living in Vancouver who has returned to Toronto, where she grew up, for the opening of a retrospective of her work. She recalls her childhood in vivid vignettes, and the narrative alternates between her childhood and the present.

When Elaine is eight years old, she, her parents, and her brother, Stephen, travel frequently for Elaine’s father’s work as an entomologist. They camp or stay in motels, and Elaine and Stephen are close friends, playing war games and helping their father with his work.