Life of Pi - Yann Martel

One boy. One boat. One tiger.

Life of Pi by Yann Martel has taken over Birdsong as the best book I have ever read.

The whole way through reading it I was in the blissful position of not being able to put it down. It was everything I love in a good book. Colourful. Different. Unpredictable.

I didn’t know anything about it beyond the fact it had a tiger in it. I read it because I saw the trailer for the film and thought ‘What the hell is that about?’. If you don’t know already, it is about a boy who becomes stranded at sea with a zebra, a hyena, a tiger and a rat.

During his 227-day voyage both the thinkable and the unthinkable happen to him. His physical and mental strength are tested beyond comprehension as he tries to survive, and Pi, who narrates the novel, uses his unbelievable story as the basis for his belief in God.

“Love is hard to believe, ask any lover. Life is hard to believe, ask any scientist. God is hard to believe, ask any believer. What is your problem with hard to believe?”

I don’t want to spoil the ending for anyone, but the reader is left with a decision to make. Do you prefer and believe an extraordinary tail of endurance and friendship? Or do you believe a more comprehensible, tragic version of events.

There is no twist (which the movie version would like you to believe there is). There are simply two versions of events and you get to choose which one you prefer. It sounds complicated. It isn’t, I promise. And I can pretty much guarantee that, even though you may not want to, you will prefer the story that includes a tiger.

Life of Pi was a little bit of an emotional journey for me. I connected with its main character and his views on religion, I am already in love with India and the culture it has to offer, and I am a vegetarian (so I love animals). However, even if none of these things were true, I would love Life of Pi for the story it tells. It is original and breathtaking. A must read for story lovers everywhere.