In the Skin of a Lion is a book written by Michael Ondaatje, a Canadian-Sri Lankan author. It was published in 1987 by McClelland and Stewart. The story is based on the lives of immigrants who helped build Toronto in the early 1900s, but their work was not officially recognized in the city’s history. Ondaatje shows how these immigrants contributed to Canada through their hard work, even though they were not fully accepted by mainstream society. The book explores the experiences of people who move to a new place, describing how they change and adapt: “It is a novel about the wearing and the removal of masks; the shedding of skin, the transformations and translations of identity.”

A key part of the book is its description of Toronto in the 1930s. Ondaatje studied old city records and newspaper articles from that time. The story highlights the construction of two important Toronto landmarks: the Prince Edward Viaduct, also called the Bloor Street Viaduct, and the R. C. Harris Water Treatment Plant. It focuses on the lives of the immigrant workers who built these places. The plot includes real events from the time, such as a nun falling from a bridge, the mysterious disappearance of Ambrose Small, the political conflict involving Police Chief Draper, and the murder of labor union leaders Rosvall and Voutilainen.

In a small part of the book, a character named Patrick Lewis visits Paris, Ontario. Ondaatje describes parts of the town, including Broadway Street, Wheelers Needleworks, Medusa, Paris Plains, the Arlington hotel, and the Paris Public Library.

The title of the book comes from a line in The Epic of Gilgamesh, an ancient story. The line appears in the book’s epigraph, which reads: “I will let my hair grow long for your sake, I will wander through the wilderness in the skin of a lion.” This quote connects to the book’s theme of different voices sharing stories about the past.

The book was nominated for the Governor General’s Award for English Language Fiction in 1987. Ondaatje’s more famous novel, The English Patient (1992), continues some of the same characters from In the Skin of a Lion, including Hana and Caravaggio, and also reveals what happens to the main character, Patrick Lewis.

Plot summary

The first chapter, "Little Seeds," tells about Patrick Lewis's childhood. This helps explain why he does certain things later in the story. As a boy in Depot Creek, Ontario, Patrick sees loggers arrive in winter, work in mills during other seasons, and skate on the frozen river. His father, Hazen Lewis, becomes a dynamiter. Every evening, Hazen carefully washes his clothes to remove traces of explosives. These details set the stage for what happens next in the story.

"The Bridge" describes the building of the Bloor Street Viaduct, which will connect eastern Toronto to the city center and carry traffic, water, and electricity across the Don Valley. R.C. Harris, the city's Public Works Commissioner, often visits the bridge at night. One night, five nuns walk onto the unfinished bridge, and one falls off. Nicholas Temelcoff, a Macedonian worker on the bridge, saves the nun who fell. He breaks his arm in the process. The nun, who is missing her veil, tears her habit to make a sling for him. Later, at a bar, Nicholas gives her brandy and kind words. Though Nicholas speaks little English, he and the nun share a bond through their scars—his from work, hers from being "always unlucky." This moment marks the beginning of the nun's transformation into the character Alice. Nicholas falls asleep and wakes to find a doctor treating his arm and the nun gone.

As a young man, Patrick leaves the job that killed his father and searches for the missing millionaire Ambrose Small. This leads him to meet Clara Dickens, Small's mistress, and to develop a relationship with her. Eventually, Patrick stops looking for Small and only wants to help Clara leave him. Clara tells Patrick she will go after Small and warns him not to follow her. Patrick is heartbroken. Three years later, Clara's friend Alice arrives and tells Patrick that Clara's mother might know where Clara is. Patrick searches for Clara and learns she and Small are living in his old hometown. Patrick finds Small in a house owned by a timber company. Small tries to hurt Patrick by throwing kerosene on him and then by throwing a Molotov cocktail. Patrick escapes to his hotel room and is later visited by Clara, who treats his wounds and has a romantic moment with him before returning to Small.

In 1930, Patrick works as a dynamiter on a tunnel under Lake Ontario, part of Commissioner Rowland Harris's project. Patrick rents an apartment in a Macedonian neighborhood and is welcomed by neighbors. Kosta, a fellow dynamiter, invites Patrick to a gathering at the Waterworks, where people from different countries meet for political talks and entertainment. Patrick sees a performance where an actor hits her hand against the stage and then someone helps her. He recognizes her as Alice Gull. Her act of helping is part of the show. Patrick visits Alice and learns about her nine-year-old daughter, Hana. Patrick and Alice become lovers. Through Alice's friends, Patrick finds work at a leather company and meets Nicholas Temelcoff, now a baker. After studying the bridge, Patrick learns about the nun who fell off and whose body was never found. He connects this to Nicholas and promises to care for Hana.

Patrick travels by train north of Huntsville, then takes a steamer to a Muskoka hotel visited by wealthy people. He burns down the hotel, escapes on a small boat, and reaches an island where he meets the blind Elizabeth. We learn that Alice died suddenly, and Patrick burned the hotel out of anger. Patrick swims to a boat, knowing he will be caught by the police.

In Kingston Penitentiary, Patrick and two other prisoners, Buck and Caravaggio, paint the roof. Patrick and Buck paint Caravaggio in the color of the roof so he can hide and escape. Caravaggio steals new clothes and changes his appearance. He jumps a milk train and heads north toward cottage country. He has a scar from an attack Patrick saved him from by shouting a square dance call. Caravaggio recalls his first robbery, during which he broke his ankle while stealing a painting. He hid in a mushroom factory, where a young woman named Giannetta helped him recover. They escaped by dressing as women. Caravaggio visits a cottage where he met a woman and calls her his wife to let her know he is safe. After talking to the cottage owner, he returns to his brother-in-law's house and reunites with Giannetta.

Four years later, Patrick is released from prison and meets Temelcoff at the Geranium Bakery. Hana, now sixteen, has been living with Temelcoff's family. Patrick takes care of Hana. One night, Hana wakes Patrick to say Clara Dickens has called. She tells him Small is dead and asks him to pick her up from Marmora.

Realizing the water supply is at risk of being cut off or poisoned, Harris installs guards at the Waterworks, which he built. Caravaggio introduces Patrick to his wife. They attend a party for the rich and steal a multimillion-dollar yacht from a couple they chloroform. Patrick plans to blow up the Filtration Plant with dynamite and Caravaggio's help. He enters the plant through the water intake, places dynamite around the testing facility, and carries the detonating box to Harris's office. There, he accuses Harris of mistreating workers and ignoring their struggles. Patrick tells Harris about Alice Gull's death, which happened when she accidentally picked up the wrong satchel containing a bomb. Exhausted, Patrick falls asleep. The next morning, Harris asks the police to defuse the bombs and bring a nurse for Patrick.

Patrick wakes and goes with Hana to retrieve Clara. At Hana's urging, Patrick tells her about Clara. Patrick asks Hana to drive to Marmora. The book ends with "'Lights' he said."

Analysis

This novel is classified by theme as post-colonial because it focuses on the cultures and languages of immigrants in Canada. The structure of the novel can also be described as postmodern, as the author combines different voices, images, and rearranges time to share these stories.

Watson and McLeod point out that the character Patrick, and the narrator, act as observers searching for "truths" to create a complete history that includes all parts of the story.

Devi uses the author’s method of combining different stories to show how immigrants in Canada had very different experiences. This method also represents how their unofficial history is often left out of official records.

Scholar Tessa Wotherspoon analyzes the novel through a feminist and animal studies perspective. She argues the book shows how men and non-human animals were both unfairly treated in early 20th-century Toronto. The story highlights how industrial work involved both humans and animals, such as cattle, mules, and pit horses, who faced dangerous and violent labor for projects like Commissioner Harris’s waterworks. This interpretation suggests the novel challenges traditional ideas of masculinity. Characters like Patrick Lewis and Nicholas Temelcoff begin by showing a type of masculinity focused on work and risk-taking. However, their relationships with women and their growing awareness of animal suffering change how they express their gender. A significant moment occurs in the leather tannery, where workers jump into vats filled with animal skins. This scene is interpreted as a visual representation of two groups of people who are both oppressed coming together.

Themes and motifs

The title of the novel comes from a line in The Epic of Gilgamesh, which appears in a quote at the beginning of the book: "I will let my hair grow long for your sake, I will wander through the wilderness in the skin of a lion." This line connects to the theme of different people sharing their stories about the past. A quote from Diogenes appears at the end of the third act: "In a rich man's house there is nowhere to spit except in his face." Earlier in the third act, the character Caravaggio is described as keeping a dog to help him during burglaries because he does not trust others. Light and darkness are important throughout the book. Examples include the light from a lantern, flaming cattails, and moonlight, as well as moments when light is turned off, such as when Patrick removes a lamp during a break-in or during a final conversation between Patrick and Harris. The color blue is mentioned often, especially when Caravaggio escapes from prison, as it helps him blend into the blue prison roof. Caravaggio also talks to Patrick about the idea of boundaries and how they separate people.

Awards and recognition

• The book was nominated for the 1987 Governor General's Award for books written in English.
• The novel In the Skin of a Lion, supported by Steven Page, won the 2002 version of Canada Reads.
• The City of Toronto Archives created a special tour of historic photos taken by Arthur Goss for students reading In the Skin of a Lion. This was done because the author, Michael Ondaatje, studied these photos while researching the book.
• In 2009, a passage from "The Bridge" was put on the Bloor Street Viaduct in Toronto. This became the first "bookmark" for Project Bookmark Canada, starting Canada's literary trail.