Life of Pi by Yann Martel

I really enjoyed Life of Pi, though I can totally see why other reviewers thought otherwise. The entire novel is based on metaphor and story telling. If you are into books that really make you ponder and question when you are finished... this probably would be a good book for you.

Not meant for straight shooters who like a lot of action in novels. Yes... at times I did feel like it went a little too.. er -- slow. But I find with Life of Pi that if you approach it with an open mind, you may get more out of it then going into it with certain assumptions in mind.

I agree that it would make a great book club read. Lots to think about and different interpretations would be interesting to hear. They are making a movie out of Pi as well... so I would curious to see how the producers would play it out.

This book is a "thinker". Philosophy, metaphor, and all the other stuff you learned in 20th Century English Lit will be required prerequisites before you pick this book up. It's not a light read, because what you think is going on, is not.

Actually, this would make for a fabulous book club pick. A beach read? That would really depend. I personally liked it, but can certainly see why the previous reviewer did not.

I was tremendously disappointed with this book. Many people had recommended it to me, and it was a best seller so I thought it was a sure thing. I was wrong – I hated the whole thing.

Life of Pi tells the story of Pi, a young boy growing up in India – his father owns a zoo, so he grows up surrounded by wild animals. He is a smart boy, and feels very close to God – oddly, he chooses to be a practicing Catholic, Muslim and Hindu. Due to political turmoil in India at the time, the family decides to sell all of their animals and move to Canada. In a dramatic twist of events, the ship they are sailing on sinks, and Pi is left sharing a lifeboat with a hyena, an orangutan, an injured zebra and a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. The bulk of the book is the story of their amazing journey.

My problem with the story is that I felt very little happened. There were not a significant number of events, and I thought they story lacked momentum. I was sitting there waiting for something – ANYTHING – to happen. Upon finishing the book I spoke to the same people who had recommended it to me, asking them how they could have loved such a slow and boring book. It seems that there is a profound underlying meaning to the story (which I still don’t think is all that profound, but that’s just me) that went completely over my head. Apparently while I was busy waiting for something to happen, I was missing the significance of what WAS happening. Part of me wishes someone would have told me to pay attention that that before I had started reading. The other part thinks that if I didn’t get it on my own, perhaps the book just really wasn’t for me.

My profound disappointment with this book is based on going on with high hopes. I blame this on the people who recommended it to me, the fact that it is a best seller, and also the claim on the back of the book by one reviewer that said something like, this is a story to make you believe in God. In hindsight I should have known that that was too large of a claim – anything that makes such a lofty promise is bound to be a let down, and it was.

Although I had a bad experience with this book, I would still reccomened it to others. If you don’t like books that are uneventful then it is definitely not for you. However, I think that if you are able to connect with the story the way it seems many have, then you will truly enjoy it. Good luck to you!