E-audiobook
The cat's table [electronic resource] : [a novel] / Michael Ondaatje.
In the early 1950s, an eleven-year-old boy in Colombo boards a ship bound for England. At mealtimes he is seated at the "cat's table"-- as far from the Captain's Table as can be-- with a ragtag group of "insignificant" adults and two other boys, Cassius and Ramadhin. As the ship makes its way across the Indian Ocean, through the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, the boys tumble from one adventure to another, bursting all over the place like freed mercury. But there are other diversions as well: one man talks with them about jazz and women, another opens the door to the world of literature. The narrator's elusive, beautiful cousin Emily becomes his confidante, allowing him to see himself "with a distant eye" for the first time, and to feel the first stirring of desire. Another Cat's Table denizen, the shadowy Miss Lasqueti, is perhaps more than what she seems. And very late every night, the boys spy on a shackled prisoner, his crime and his fate a galvanizing mystery that will haunt them forever.
Record details
- ISBN: 9780307943743
- ISBN: 0307943747
- ISBN: 9780307943729
- ISBN: 0307943720
- Physical Description: 1 sound file (7 hr., 43 sec.) : digital
- Edition: Unabridged.
- Publisher: New York, N.Y. : Books on Tape, p2011.
Content descriptions
| General Note: | Downloadable audio file. Subtitle from container. |
| Participant or Performer Note: | Read by the author. |
| Source of Description Note: | Description based on audiobook version record. |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Coming of age > Fiction. Ocean travel > Fiction. |
| Genre: | Adventure fiction. Bildungsromans. Sea stories. Audiobooks. |
Other Formats and Editions
Electronic resources
- Baker & Taylor
Boarding a 1950s ship and sequestered to an out-of-sight dining table with other marginalized children, an eleven-year-old boy shares rollicking adventures while traveling to various world regions, learning about jazz, women, and a shackled prisoner along the way. - Findaway World Llc
In the early 1950s, an eleven-year-old boy in Colombo boards a ship bound for England. At mealtimes he is seated at the âcatâs tableââas far from the Captainâs Table as can beâwith a ragtag group of âinsignificantâ adults and two other boys, Cassius and Ramadhin. As the ship makes its way across the Indian Ocean, through the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, the boys tumble from one adventure to another, bursting all over the place like freed mercury. But there are other diversions as well: one man talks with them about jazz and women, another opens the door to the world of literature. The narratorâs elusive, beautiful cousin Emily becomes his confidante, allowing him to see himself âwith a distant eyeâ for the first time, and to feel the first stirring of desire. Another Catâs Table denizen, the shadowy Miss Lasqueti, is perhaps more than what she seems. And very late every night, the boys spy on a shackled prisoner, his crime and his fate a galvanizing mystery that will haunt them forever.
Â
As the narrative moves between the decks and holds of the ship and the boyâs adult years, it tells a spellbinding storyâby turns poignant and electrifyingâabout the magical, often forbidden, discoveries of childhood and a lifelong journey that begins unexpectedly with a spectacular sea voyage. - Random House Digital
In the early 1950s, an eleven-year-old boy in Colombo boards a ship bound for England. At mealtimes he is seated at the "cat's table"--as far from the Captain's Table as can be--with a ragtag group of "insignificant" adults and two other boys, Cassius and Ramadhin. As the ship makes its way across the Indian Ocean, through the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, the boys tumble from one adventure to another, bursting all over the place like freed mercury. But there are other diversions as well: one man talks with them about jazz and women, another opens the door to the world of literature. The narrator's elusive, beautiful cousin Emily becomes his confidante, allowing him to see himself "with a distant eye" for the first time, and to feel the first stirring of desire. Another Cat's Table denizen, the shadowy Miss Lasqueti, is perhaps more than what she seems. And very late every night, the boys spy on a shackled prisoner, his crime and his fate a galvanizing mystery that will haunt them forever. Ã As the narrative moves between the decks and holds of the ship and the boy's adult years, it tells a spellbinding story--by turns poignant and electrifying--about the magical, often forbidden, discoveries of childhood and a lifelong journey that begins unexpectedly with a spectacular sea voyage.From the Hardcover edition. - Random House, Inc.
In the early 1950s, an eleven-year-old boy in Colombo boards a ship bound for England. At mealtimes he is seated at the âcatâs tableââas far from the Captainâs Table as can beâwith a ragtag group of âinsignificantâ adults and two other boys, Cassius and Ramadhin. As the ship makes its way across the Indian Ocean, through the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, the boys tumble from one adventure to another, bursting all over the place like freed mercury. But there are other diversions as well: one man talks with them about jazz and women, another opens the door to the world of literature. The narratorâs elusive, beautiful cousin Emily becomes his confidante, allowing him to see himself âwith a distant eyeâ for the first time, and to feel the first stirring of desire. Another Catâs Table denizen, the shadowy Miss Lasqueti, is perhaps more than what she seems. And very late every night, the boys spy on a shackled prisoner, his crime and his fate a galvanizing mystery that will haunt them forever.
Â
As the narrative moves between the decks and holds of the ship and the boyâs adult years, it tells a spellbinding storyâby turns poignant and electrifyingâabout the magical, often forbidden, discoveries of childhood and a lifelong journey that begins unexpectedly with a spectacular sea voyage.
From the Hardcover edition.
