Life of Pi by Yann Martel Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Life of Pi
Book Review: A Great Read
Summary: 4 Stars
Life of Pi was a fascinating read, one that worked on many levels. The story was believable enough to keep you on the edge and fantastic enough to keep you turning the pages. I will be surprised if it doesn't win the Booker Prize, though I'm not sure this one is destined to be one of the all-time classics. It gives the reader a lot to think about, much like the movie or storyline from "Castaway". It keeps the reader wondering how they themselves could and would react if pushed to the absolute limits like Pi in this story. I find myself recalling scenes and situations from the book and it certainly does have that haunting quality. You'll find this one on a lot of book-club lists for the simple reason that it actually does a reasonably good job of living up to the hype it gets.Book Review: A Great Short Story, too bad it's a novel
Summary: 3 Stars
Look I know this won all sorts of awards and the critics went uniformly agog over it, but frankly it just isn't interesting enough to be a novel. Some of the blurbs compare this to Hemingway's 'Old Man and the Sea.' In case you weren't aware of the history of that publication; Hemingway originally wrote that as a short story and then expanded it slightly to a 'novella' size (whatever that means) and published it in the September 1952 of 'Life' magazine. It only later was independently published as a very short novel.
Martel would have been well served to follow that example. There is no doubt his writing is brilliant at times, but it is also very self conscious and, at times, really pretentious. I know I'm not the only one who was not so impressed by this book. I don't tend to read `best sellers' like this because of this very reason. Book (or Literary, as they prefer) critics often look for books like this which are well written, but not all that interesting. They then tell us that we are not very smart if we don't fall over ourselves reading these things.
The book is well worth you time, but get it from the library or buy the mass market trade edition; this is a tad expensive for what it is.
Book Review: A Jewel Worth Finding
Summary: 5 Stars
It was the jacket of this book that first caught my eye. The fanciful illustration of the boy and tiger in a little white boat, hoardes of sharks swimming below them, made me instant curious if the actual book itself would be the same way. I resisted buying it for a week or two, but I finally gave in - and was in no way disappointed.The narration is intelligent and easy to follow at the same time, and Yann Martel draws on many fresh sources to find humor. From the moment I started reading, I couldn't put it down. The days that Pi is lost at sea read like a dream, and all of the boy's hardships are your own. There is no way to express in words the sort of book this is, or how wonderfully Martel captured the entire event in words.
I would reccommend this book to anyone, and already have given it to several people.
Book Review: A Kon-Tiki/Pilgrim's Progress/Sophie's Choice for the soul
Summary: 5 Stars
Animals can teach us about spirituality. So can Piscine Molitor Patel, the eponymous Pi, a Hindu Noah who survives Yann Martel's version of Herman Melville's "The Open Boat." Pi Patel navigates a voyage that has to be read to be believed. I read this on a plane ride and it made me good-humored about going through airport security.
What a wonderful story, with incredible use of language, rich, strange, soulful and brilliant. How can one choose between one's life and the life of an animal? Who survives? Life of Pi is a fulfilling Life indeed.
Book Review: A MUST-HAVE BOOK!
Summary: 5 Stars
It seems that the Life of Pi is a culmination and the story of the Life of People. Our journey through life is filled with wonderful and dangerous events, death, fear and pain, yet it is difficult to convince ourselves, even with religion, that what we have is truly what we need to survive - however little and odd that may be. As a reader, I felt sad and joyful when I closed the back cover, but I was left with a touch of wonder streaming through my mind. Are our lives just as strange? Do we like Pi and like the mathematical symbol go on surviving randomly from day to day, holding our ever present fears, our Bengal Tigers, under some semblance of control? When will we reach the shores of survival so our fears will vanish in the woods, never to be seen again? I purchased this book through Amazon.com right after another great purchase, The Losers' Club by Richard Perez, about an unlucky writer addicted to the personals. Both are intense, recommended books. Enjoy!