Life of Pi
Publication Date: September 11, 2001
Publisher: Random House of Canada
Pages: 326
Summary:
One Teenage Boy. One Bengal Tiger. Can they overcome their differences to survive amidst the ocean sea? After economic hardships cloud India, the Patel family bids farewell to their native land and sets sail for Canada. Tragedy ensues when the Tsimtsum sinks beneath the waves, leaving Piscine Molitor Patel as the only human survivor. But Pi is not alone; Richard Parker, a fearsome bengal tiger, also survived the fatal voyage. Both must learn to rely on the other if they want to survive.
Plot:
Life of Pi consists of a complex plot line that delivers a heart-wrenching tale. However, I wasn't entirely pleased with the story's execution. Martel chose to follow a well-known trope for his novel, one that that did not spark any exaggerated interest while reading. Many fictional novels follow a plot line where the main character becomes isolated in a particular fashion and must overcome prejudice in order to survive. Personally, I did not feel that Martel's version of this trope offered me any inflated excitement, which left the plot line considerably dull. Additionally, I did feel that the novel became too intense at certain periods. Reading about a teenage boy, and his animal counterparts, suffer relentlessly in the Pacific Ocean made made me feel uncomfortable and displeased while reading.
Characters:
Pi Patel's witty and optimistic attitude offered light in the dark undertones of the story. I highly enjoyed reading the novel from Pi's perspective; he is a devout follower of God who never strays from his faith in times of uncertainty. I found Pi's positive outlook on life to be a highly inspirational aspect, and make the novel more enjoyable as a whole.
Setting:
I did not find the setting of Life of Pi to be overly captivating. While I appreciated Pi's journey of traveling to and fro among various destinations in the sea, I did not find any of these locations to be overly appealing. Personally, I felt that the familiarity of the setting caused Pi's journey to have a slower progression that exceeded the storyline.
Review:
Life of Pi was not a favorite for me. My overall review for this book is one and a half star out of five. But just because I didn't enjoy this book doesn't mean you won't. If you are a fan of action/adventure stories, such as Lord of the Flies by William Golding or The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, you may want to pick this book up. Thanks for reading! :)
