I’ve been meaning to join an official book club for a while now, because obviously I love discussing books, and Téa Obreht’s The Tiger’s Wife is the book that has finally made me pull the trigger on that.

In other words, this is a novel I need to talk through – from the unique structure to the heavy symbolism to genre blending and cultural influences… I just have so many questions. And while some readers might find it frustrating to leave a book with questions unanswered, I personally love being asked to think critically about the various meanings hidden throughout a story.

And though I think it is certainly possible to read too much into “hidden meanings” and symbolism, Obreht’s novel blends just the right amount of clarity and ambiguity. The narrative follows three distinct, yet related stories, two of which read like local legends or fables with hints of magical realism, cultural influence, and regional history, and which shed light on the third strand of the narrative about the death of the protagonist’s grandfather.

Serendipitously, I saw that an Instagram influencer I enjoy, @fictionmatters, selected this as her July book club pick. I’ll be joining in on the discussion and may just have to come back for a part 2 to this book review! 😀

Related Links:

Get the book from an independent bookstore or publisher.

Join the Fiction Matters Patreon to become part of the book club. The Tiger’s Wife is her July pick!

Read more book reviews.