Life of Pi

Rating:
Summary: Mind-Capturing Twist at the End
Review: The descriptions throughout the book were so thorough and rich that the entire way through you are seemingly held in the small lifeboat with Pi. But when it gets to the end of the book, the author turns this good book great... read it (or listen to it) to believe it!

Rating:
Summary: Answering "the big question"
Review: This adventurous tale has a theme of bringing together things that don't seem to belong with each other - from Pi's combined faith in the teachings of Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam to his survival at sea trapped in a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger. The author takes these seemingly contradictory things and fits them together so that they become not only sensible, but necessary.

Even though you know from the beginning that Pi eventually escapes the waters of the Pacific, I was nevertheless drawn forward wondering exactly how.

When the tale finally reaches its end, the dramatic metaphorical twist in plot really does live up to the claim that it will make you believe in God (or strengthen your belief). Instead of asking "Is there a God?," Pi instead asks "Is life worth living if there isn't?" The answer to the first question then becomes plain for both the character and the reader.

"Life of Pi" is thoroughly engrossing - its every aspect a fascinating piece of storytelling. It has secured a place among the best books I've read.

Rating:
Summary: Decent
Review: I picked up this book becaues friends have been recommending it to me for quite some time. It is a funny read with some interesting parts. I liked the tiger the best. Overall a decent read.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful!
Review: Yann Martel's Life of Pi is a wondrous, marvelous novel. There is much to wonder and marvel at in this wonderful book. The story is simple, yet complex at the same time and can be read on many levels. On the surface, this is the story of a young man who grows up in India and at sixteen, en route to Canada with his family, finds himself the sole survivor of a shipwreck, afloat on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger. The story is divided into two sections. The first parts centers on the boy's life as a young zookeeper's son. As a boy, he decides to become a practicing Catholic, Muslim and Hindu, all at once. His ruminations on zoo keeping and religion lay the groundwork for his strength to want to survive on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger. Beyond the story, however, is an examination of religion and of how to write about the religious experience. It is an examination on the strengths (and weaknesses) of religious belief. I had a difficult time getting into this novel at first, but the progression of the story compelled me to finish it. I'm glad I did. The novel ends with a philosophical bang, which I won't spoil for the readers. Martel impressed me with the wonderful and flooring ending. Life of Pi is not a typical novel. It is a unique, compelling, enchanting reading experience. I highly recommend it...

Rating:
Summary: Believable?
Review: I almost skipped this extraordinary book because the premise was so hard to imagine. A tiger in a life boat? The story unfolds naturally once begun and flows with the magic of a tale well told. Pi's problem solving skills start with his name, continue through his taming skills, and extend beyond an astonishing will to live. Having little expectation, this book was a great surprise.

Rating:
Summary: Moving Metaphors
Review: What a beautiful tale of a man so full of God he needed three religions to encompass his faith. I was so enthralled by his culture and tale, then completely moved by the metaphor of his struggle. If I could have an endless book that told this man's story, I would read it over and over again.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting but a bit pretensious
Review: Quite a number of friends of mine have raved about this book. Having read it, I am sorry to say I am a bit disappointed. The author tried to imitate the "exotic" and fashionable writing of some Indian authors. For the same type of writing, I would rather read "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy, which I find mesmerizing and totally enjoyable. Pretending to be "exotic" and "fashionable" through superficial references to food and dishes from a faraway land, does not cut it with me. It lacks authenticity and comes across as pretensious.

Pi's less than conventional religious practices are interesting but ultimately not so groud breaking that it makes you look at life and religion differently. I personnally know of many people who practice more than one religions. The author picked up on an intereting theme but failed to bring it to a higher level of discussion.

The two alternative endings are unexpected and does give the readers food for thought which makes this book more interesting than I would thought of it.

This is an interesting albeit pretensious book. I am still not sure whether this merits the Booker Prize.

Rating:
Summary: Great Novel
Review: This is an extremely extraordinary book. The story centers around our main character, Pi Patel; he is the son of a zookeeper in India who's actual name in full was Piscine Molitor, named after a swimming pool that a family friend went to regularly. But children at school began calling him Pissing, so he shortened it to Pi. Pi was pretty uncomfortable in school, as so many kids are. Up his alley more was home life. It's interesting to note how he observes certain behavioral "instincts" from the animals at the zoo. The same schedule and habits they are accustomed acted out day in and day out. If someone happens to come along and change their routine even a tiny bit, uncertainty for them sets in. They may even begin drawing away from the world.

I won't give away the whole story for you. But, Pi's mom and dad are both completely non religious; whereas to Pi, these religious aspects of life are fascinating. Pi considers himself Hindu, yet also finds himself attracted to Christianity and Islam, as well. So by chance he meets up with a Catholic priest and later comes to get baptized. He also has talks with a Muslim Sufi in the market, and soon gets a prayer rug and begins praying as fervently as any devout Muslim would 5 days a week. The religious leaders in Pi's area didn't like this at all. They wanted to force him into choosing one religion over the other. But Pi was not about to give up his interreligious activities. He was simply showing and expressing his love for God in any way he could do so.

This book gets very intersting from here, where Pi even has an "enlightenment" experience down the road. To sum up, "Life of Pi" is a layered searching out of the Unknown that illuminates all our lives. This should absolutely be on everyone's bookshelf. Enjoy it.

Rating:
Summary: Slow Cooked Pi
Review: Once I reached the end, I had enjoyed reading the book. The beginning was agonizingly slow. All that set up about religion and the zoo and the family...pretty dull. I was expecting a survival story, not a treatise on religious philosophies. Sorry, I don't read to tax my brain...I read to escape. I did enjoy the ending...slight twist and all. I can understand now why M. Night Shyamalan is interested in filming this book. So, if you can get past the slow beginning and get to the meat of the story, you'll enjoy it.

Rating:
Summary: compelling,
Review: while the first few chapters were a bit tedious to get through, the novel picked up and turned into a compelling work of fiction- I adored it by the end and mostly, infact , because I was made to re-think the entire book. To me, the alternative ending was the most fascinating aspect of the book- It made me go back and re-read sections which I have not done with a book in ages. When Pi effortlessly re-told the story at the end (the alternative story), I was torn between which version I thought was the truth. I have been thinking about this for hours, waiting for someone I know to finish it so I can talk it over with them....the true sign of a good read!