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Tiger Lillie is a wonderfully fresh and lively novel detailing the life and loves of Lillie Bauer – wedding coordinator extrodinaire. The characters are definitely memorable and unapologetic about their humanness. They are an unlikely cast of characters who come together in a brilliant camaraderie and friendship. This novel is somewhat reminiscent of another very “real” novel, Blue Like Jazz. When I say “real” I mean that there is the lack of pretentiousness or drama about characters who are “larger than life” or unrealistically too perfect. There is nothing perfect about each of the characters in this novel, except that they are perfectly human. The main character is in fact self-described as over weight but she doesn’t spend the entire novel spurning chocolate and munching on carrots in order to win a man. The fact that her favourite colour is orange tells a great deal about her personality. It is her realness or genuineness that attracts the man in the end. Isn’t that what we all want? To be known and loved for who we are? Not who we want to be or think we should be, but who we really are – quirks and warts included.

The supporting characters, Teddy (the character we never meet but learn about – the original one who loved Lillie for who she was so many years ago), Pleasance-the effervescent, eccentric African-American designer, Cristoff – the decidedly gay florist who is Lillie’s best friend, Grandma Erzsebet – the strong, Hungarian matriarch who gives Lillie her strength, Tacy – the fragile little sister who needs rescuing from her abusive husband, Rawlins – the abusive husband you love to detest, Gordon – the man who wins Lillie’s heart and is no knight in shining armour except that he loves Lillie. They all make up an extraordinary cast of characters that add flavour and depth to this book and make it real.

My only contention is that the novel almost appears to be trying to win a “politically correct award” for including every downtrodden set of people possible – the black woman, the gay man, the abused woman, the abducted boy, etc. The Hungarian family was a bit of a surprise – a Jewish one would have made the downtrodden theory almost perfect. However, having said that I think it is rather a glimpse of our varied and real relationships in this modern day and age where a Christian woman can be friends with a gay man, where a black woman is seen as a strong and creative force; where being overweight and quirky is perfectly normal and more than that – attractive.

I applaud Lisa Sampson for this amazing book! Get yourself a copy and delight yourself in this novel like I did. You’ll be glad you did!