Life of Pi by Yann Martel is a delightful piece of literary work. Once picked it up, I couldn’t put it down; with every turn of the page, I became more and more curious. Martel has created an utterly imaginative and uplifting story, not to mention hilarious and totally amusing too.
Life of Pi is about a sixteen-year-old Indian boy, Pi Patel, whose full name is Piscine Molitor Patel. He was named after a swimming pool in France.
Pi is religiously inclined, and his curiosity about different beliefs leads him to embrace all three: Hinduism, Christianity and Islam. He is also very observant, and since his father is the director of a zoo, he gets plenty of animal education. He is a smart and fast learner.
His father decides to close down the zoo and sells the animals to other zoos worldwide. They then travel with the animals aboard the ill-fated cargo ship Tsimtsum. Pi’s family perish in the tragic sinking of the ship in the Pacific Ocean. Pi survives the wreck along with a hyena, a zebra with a broken leg, a female orang-utan, and a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Imagine what it’s like to have such a company on a LIFE BOAT!
What follows is the story of Pi’s survival in the vast ocean over many, many uncertain days. More than 200 days, to be exact. Very graphic. So much so, I couldn’t stop reading and just kept going. Do check out the clever conversation with his Japanese inquisitors at the end.
I must say, I’m totally bowled over by this must-read novel. DON’T MISS IT.
