Life of Pi by Yann Martel Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Life of Pi
Book Review: A Great Ad enture Tale
Summary: 5 Stars
I loved this book. The tale of how Pi survives his ordeal at sea (and his living arrangements with the tiger) is completly engrossing. Martel's prose is excellent and flows seamlisley. I enjoyed the juxtaposition of Pi's religous beliefs wuithin various passages throughout the book. It's definitley a read that could soon be considered a classic!Book Review: A Great Adventure Tale Indeed
Summary: 4 Stars
I suppose after reading all of the promises made by this book (it will make me believe in God ect..) that I was a bit disappointed by its philosophical and theological aspects. Instead of being the center theme of the story, they were more of simple, surface level references, which were pleasant to read and ponder but nonetheless a bit shallow.
The book is pretty slow to get going, as it spends an awful lot of time establishing the main characters personality. But once it does get going the main character's personality truly comes into play. Also, I found the last portion of the book to be unnecessary; the idea of an alternate story and ambiguous realities didn't necessarily tickle my brain or bring to light any great philosophical revelations.
That being said, the story itself was great. The idea of a boy stranded alone in a boat with a tiger is far fetched but interesting, and the situations it brings up are intelligent and entertaining. The descriptions of the ocean put you right in the middle of it. The story of the living island was my favorite part, the descriptions of it are breathtaking. There is a sort of romanticism about the whole situation. It read a bit like a child's book with a simple naivety that was nothing short of charming. I loved every minute.
I truly began to enjoy Life of Pi when I stopped waiting for some great religious experience to jump off the pages and began to take the book as simply a great story. Maybe if my expectations had been the other way around the results would have been too. But that is impossible to tell. All in all, the meat of the story overshadows its otherwise trivial shortcomings. I would suggest that you take Life of Pi simply as a well written, wonderful story, and nothing more.
Book Review: A Great Book
Summary: 5 Stars
I could not put this book down..... it explores the mind in ways that one can only see by reading and re reading the book. A highly imoprobably sitiuation (a boy and a tiger surviving on lifeboat) is made not only plausable, but it also seems to be the only possible explanation. Yann ends the story in such a beautiful way that would cause the reader to wonder, 'what in my life is real, and what is perceived?'
Book Review: A Great Book!
Summary: 5 Stars
Life of Pi is a beautiful and intriguing story about an Indian boy, son of a zookeeper, who finds himself lost at see after a ship he is on, with many of the zoo's animals, sinks in the middle of the open and deserted ocean. He comes to realize that the life raft, on which he clings to life, is occupied not only by himself, but by a crazed hyena, a confused orangutan, an injured zebra and a dangerous Royal Bengal Tiger. Needless to say, he is petrified, and of course starving and thirsty for fresh water. Pi's story of survival and courage begins here through the author's (Yann Martel) great skill in making a fantastical novel seem incredibly real. By the end of the novel, where we are reminded of the fictitious nature of the story, it seems hard to believe that any other version of the story's events had taken place. I loved this book. It held my interest all the way through to the end. The characters are very seemingly real, and it was hard not to sympathize and want to reach out to save poor Pi as you read his story. Pi's interest and zeal for religion, all three, is intriguing and mystically thought provoking. As he bobs on the open ocean, no help in sight, it seems that Pi's devotion to higher powers is not aiding him in any form of rescue. It can appear to the reader that perhaps, due to unanswered prayers, Pi creates an alternate reality or story to help him accept the fact that he, being a former vegetarian, must now kill and eat fish and other sea creatures to survive. In Pi's fantastical story, he must not only catch and kill the sea's inhabitants to feed himself, but also the dangerous tiger who inhabits the lifeboat along with him. For if the tiger was to get too hungry, Pi would likely be next on the tiger's dinner menu, no doubt. The story is just filled with wonderful symbolism, which infiltrates the young man's story of his amazing journey across the ocean.
Simply, I really enjoyed the book from beginning to end and liked the fact that it was a book that required attention and thoughtfulness. Yann Martel gives us a hint to the story when he wrote in the preceding "author's note", "If we, citizens, do not support our artists, then we sacrifice our imagination on the altar of crude reality and we end up believing in nothing and having worthless dreams." Please read this book. Other titles I recommend: The Lovely Bones by Sebold, The Losers' Club by Richard Perez
Book Review: A Great Read
Summary: 5 Stars
A few years ago I asked my high school English teacher for a good book recommendation, and Life of Pi was the first he suggested. I was immediately attracted to the theme and was engrossed throughout the book.
The scenario in the book--being trapped on board a lifeboat with several animals, including an enormous Bengal tiger--is one that is wildly improbable, but Yann Martel presents it in a way that makes it seem almost possible. I fully recommend this to anybody in the mood for a good read.