I Like Tigers

Hey, guys!

Just finished Life of Pi by Yann Martel. No, it's not about popular American pastries, nor about math. It's about a kid, Piscine (a.k.a. Pi), who was in a shipwreck and stranded on a lifeboat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with a 450 pound live Bengal tiger.

Many of you may have already seen the major motion film based on this novel, Life of Pi. I saw it for the first time during my senior year of high school in my AP Calculus class before I read the book. Yes, we saw a movie with "Pi" in the title in math class.

Regardless, it was a good movie and it made me want to read the book. I read about half of it before I got distracted by other books. When I got back to Life of Pi, I picked up right where I left off.

In a way, I'm glad that I saw the movie first, because the beginning of the book (and the movie) has a bit of a slow start and I'm not sure I would've gotten into the book had I not known that the part where he is stuck on a lifeboat with a tiger will be coming up shortly after a little background.

This background involves a bit about how Pi got his name and his nickname, his family and the zoo that his family owned in India, how his religious faiths came to be, that kind of thing.

So, then the zoo starts to lose money and Pi's father has to sell the property, the animals, and move his family to Canada. They embark on their voyage on a cargo ship full of their zoo animals. And thus it begins.

One stormy night, the ship begins to sink and all the animals are free from their cages for reasons unknown. Pi can't find his family and is thrown by the crew into the lifeboat being lowered in the sea.

Following the sinking of the ship, the lifeboat contains a zebra, a hyena, an orangutan, a tiger, and a boy. Okay, I'll be that guy: What could possibly go wrong?

Well, you guys probably know the answer to that one. I mean, seriously, a tiger. And I'm not talking about a little cub tiger. That ship has sailed. But in this case it sank.

Anyway, all puns aside, this is a journey that challenges and enlightens Pi's spirit and faith all at the same time. Did I mention that Pi is deeply religious? Well, if not then now you know.

And I'm not saying that it's a bad thing. I may not be religious at all, but I don't mind reading books with religious characters so long as they don't get preachy. But I don't think Pi goes that far. Some of the things he sees while lost at sea (thunderstorms, bioluminescent sea creatures, sunsets, starry skies) serve to highlight the wonders of life and, in Pi's eyes, the creations of God.

But if you're not religious and don't like reading about someone talking about God, this probably isn't the book for you. However, if you enjoy survival stories or if you do practice a Christian/Muslim/Hindu faith like Pi, you might want to look into this book a little more.

As far as my opinion on this book goes, I really enjoyed it, although the beginning was a little slow. I also really enjoyed the movie and I highly recommend it as well.

Well, I think it's about time I started posting helpful hints and story starters for writers, so check in tomorrow or the day after for those. Leave comments if you enjoyed this review, have feedback about my blog, or if you want me to read and review a specific book. Until next time.

Happy reading!!