Lycanthropic anthropophagy is the main concern for Justine Larbalestier’snovel Liar (2009). The novel is about the mysterious killing of highschoolteen, Zach, in contemporary New York City. Zach’s girlfriend Micah,notorious for being a pathological liar and an outcast, is considered highlysuspect as the murderer, particularly by her parents who know she issecretly a werewolf. The werewolf is both exceptional for its specialabilities yet also cursed with uncontrollable, bloodthirsty urges at each fullmoon. This article argues that anthropophagy of the werewolf ismetaphorically an act of social taboo when one lives and behaves inopposition to the socially prescribed. Through Micah’s surreal and unstablenarration Larbalestier explores contemporary issues such as authority overthe individual, gender non-conformity, and mob mentality, in order tocriticise popular opinions that ostracise people perceived as outsiders. Thisarticle will explore these themes in greater detail and prove the ways inwhich Larbalestier uses eco-feminist fiction to communicate thesecriticisms.
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