The Tiger Rising is epitomized as a metaphor in response to the protagonist, Rob's deep-seated turmoil over the death of his mother in this realistic fiction novel. DiCamillo reveals Rob's character as reserved, serious young boy who continually tries to stifle his deep thoughts as he grapples with coping with his mother's recent death. Throughout the book DiCamillo metaphorically shows Rob keeping his not-thoughts in his suitcase which he endeavors not to open. He tries not to succumb to his emotions. Rob carves things from wood in his spare time, and it seems to reflect his thinking at least at a surface level. Living in a motel where his father works to scrape a meager living for the two of them turns out to be the least of Rob's obstacles. He is plagued by a severe rash on his legs that causes him to be teased by bullies at school and eventually dimissed from school to allow the rash to heal. The itching annoyance of the rash is exacerbated with every stressor that surfaces for Rob in the plot of the story. Rob meets an improbable friend in Sistine, a newcomer in his school; and he carves an image of her soon after meeting her. Sistine is a young girl who has been displaced by her family, and her demeanor emanates the anger and frustration she tries to hide by her resistant attitude towards people in her new home. Her interactions with Rob reflect this most clearly. At the beginning of the book Rob discovers a tiger in a cage by the woods near his motel home. He keeps this a secret while he is dealing with other issues relating to life in a motel, bullying by classmates, and getting acquainted with the strange new character of Sistine. He learns unsolicited advice from Willie May, the motel maid to whom he shares the secret of the caged tiger. He carved Willie May a bird in memory of the bird she lost when it was released from its cage. She perceptively nailed the idea that Rob and Sistine were quite a pair with both of them dealing with deep-down anger and stress issues. As Rob sees things in common with Sistine he seeks to befriend her by showing her the tiger. She immediately is fixated on freeing the tiger. The reader is surprised with how simply the plot unfolds to Rob the opportunity to gain access to the keys to the tiger's cage when the motel owner, Beauchamp gives Rob the job of feeding the tiger. As the reader wonders how the tiger will fit into the entwined drama of the deep, disturbing emotions in Rob and Sistine Rob continues his quest to get to know Sistine and to show her that he cares for her situation. Together Rob and Sistine finally agree that the tiger should be freed. The despicable character Beauchamp and the prophetess Willie May seem to have a compounding effect on both Rob and Sisine to decide to free the tiger. The reader wonders why the children to not realize the ultimate consequences of a tiger on the loose in the community, but considering the depths of their deep-seated emotions and their need for satisfying their stresses, freeing the tiger seems to lead to releasing the weight of the anger and unrest within them. The freeing of the tiger was the tiger rising with the anger rising up and out of both main characters in the story. Rob's father is the victim of Rob's unleashed emotions as Rob hits him and irrationally blames him for his unhappiness after Rob's father shoots the tiger found released and running. The killing of the tiger is instrumental in bringing Rob and his father to terms with their situation, and at last Rob is able to carve a likeness of the tiger. Life is brighter for Rob at the end of the story, and he anticipates the return to school and to furthering his friendship with Sistine who has called Rob her best friend.
This book is unlike DiCamillo's other books in its serious tone and theme of finding oneself amid tragedy. It was not one of my favorite of DiCamillo's books, but its metaphoric elements were intriguing and food for thought.
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