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Summary: Pi
Review: I have seldom been so moved by a book as I was by Life of Pi. Faith is such a difficult thing to write about. From the outside faith seems endlessly variable and intangible; different cultures, different physical conditions, different ages of man, all these things shape our perception of what faith is. Most distractingly of all, from the outside, faith seems to be wholly contained within the shapes of religions.Without any apparent effort Pi, who embraces all religions equally, takes us inside faith and gently asks us how we would live our lives? Where will we find the strength of heart to endure? A marvellous book whose humour and energy never wane. The only problem is trying to find something to read next that will seem remotely satisfying.
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Summary: Give me a break
Review: Maybe it's because I have a religious studies degree and have studied Indian history that I won't wax lyrically about this book. "Life of PI" didn't help me find God, quite the contrary, I found it had little to do with the mystery and magic of the otherworldly. What I did find was a writer who relished in describing how one animal rips apart another. Don't believe the people who tell you this is a kind of fable for the whole family. Unless you enjoy the Fight for Life kind of documentaries where animals hunt down another and then we get closeups of their rolling eyes and spurting blood, you'll best avoid this book with a body count.
If you like stories about castaways, rent the Tom Hanks film. Don't get all starry eyed because a book is set in an exotic landscape and deals with "foreign" ideas. It had some interesting ideas but other than that was a real grisly waste of time.
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Summary: RUN to buy this!
Review: A very entertaining and thought provoking tale. Easy-to-read quality literature that teaches you all about humankinds place in the world. Highly recommended.
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Summary: A book worth reading
Review: This book is interesting, unpredictable and unique. As I read it I felt alternately surprised, amused, delighted, touched, and at times transported to another world. It is an enjoyable adventure and a spiritual book as well. I highly recommend it.
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Summary: Inspiring
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed reading "Pi". I picked it up thinking it was going to be a story about faith, but it seemed to be more of a story about self-discovery and self-reliance rather than on intervention of the Almighty. Pi did not rely on his multiple faiths to get him through his ordeal. Instead, he relied on his own wits and he did persevere. The inspiring part of the story is that in spite of his survival through self-reliance, he still chose to believe in his multiple faiths. Magical. To me, the book was slow to start, but became an engaging read, good for all audiences!
Rating: 
Summary: almost, but no cigar
Review: I think a previous commentor pretty much sums up what I feel about this book. Martel is a marvelous writer and the book has squarely illuminating aims, but his execution is way off the mark. For the young and the unsure, its fresh perspective on faith may be insightful, but for those of us who are rooted with ration, if not reason in what we believe, it will more than likely do nothing. Still, though it fails to live up to its promise, three stars for a well told story.
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Summary: Enthralling Reading!
Review: To be honest, when I read the book blurb, I didn't know if I would like this book. Having said that, let me add that "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel is a wonderful read. Martel takes his reader through emotions ranging from hilarious to heart-wrenching. Pi is an exceptional character readers will empathize with and root for. I won't give a book description, as that has been done previously, but suffice it to say this book is exceptional. The ending will leave you thinking about the book long after you have read it.
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Summary: Lovely and dreamy
Review: I HATED it that one of the cover reviews said something like "you can't help but find God after reading this novel." Huh? I searched for such a revelation, but I was not rewarded. No matter. This was a beautiful book. I love the Latin-American type of magical realism, and I read this as a cultural variant--much more subtle and (perhaps?) more skilled. Whether or not the novel's experiences of Pi were actual, we find, at the end, that it doesn't matter. We have been on a great and tortuous journey, and we have learned a lot. Beautiful writing, and a beautiful and unique story line.
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Summary: Bound to be a classic for readers of all ages!
Review: I admit it- I read this book because I liked its cover. An overhead image of a boy curled up in a fetal position in a tiny lifeboat, with a tiger three times his size at the edge of the bow, seeming ready to attack the sharks, fish, and turtles that surround them in the clear blue water. The novel beautifully elucidates this image into a story full of wit, anxiety, compassion, and survival as the boy uses his exceptionally sensitive demeanor to 'tame' this tiger named Richard Parker (which, incidentally, is what I will name my next pet!). Pi uses his experience and knowledge of zookeeping to conquer his fear and what he believes is the tiger's killer nature. But most of all, it is Pi's faith which leads him to survive- his faith in Allah, Buddha, and God (yes, all of them), and his faith in his fellow shipmate. This book is an amazing and unique story which I will gladly pass on to all of my friends and family, and one I will read time and again.
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Summary: Surviving Tigers
Review: Young Piscene Molitor Patel ("Pi") lives in Pondicherry, where his father runs the zoo. Pi's parents decide to emigrate to Canada, and to sell the zoo animals. The Patel family and the animals they've sold board a ship bound for North America, but the ship sinks leaving Pi a castaway on a lifeboat with the tiger "Richard Parker" for company. What starts out as a wry and amusing story of growing up in Pondicherry (with some very interesting natural history thrown in) becomes a hugely entertaining novel of survival against the odds, and of the strange modus vivendi that develops between the boy and the tiger as they drift helplessly in the Pacific. There's something tremendously attractive about survival stories - human ingenuity and will to live overcoming the odds - even if like this, it's fiction. This story is so outrageously inventive and well-crafted, it's a real page-turner. And the author finishes the book with a nice twist in the tale! G Rodgers
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