After many years of just ‘hearing’ about “Life of Pi” by Yann Martel , winner of the 2002 Booker Prize, I finally read this book over the past weekend. To be honest, I was expecting a shipwreck-and-washed-ashore-an-island-with-animals kind of survival story, a la Cast Away or Robinson Crusoe. Even though it fanned out differently, what a story it was!! I truly savored the book. One of the striking things is the author’s tongue-in-cheek tone wherein he is sincere, frank, mocking and funny at the same time.
In brief, Piscine “Pi” Molitor Patel’s family decides to sell-off their zoo in Pondicherry and take a Japanese freighter in a bid to start life anew in Canada. The freighter capsizes in the Pacific leaving behind a handful of survivors – Pi and four wild animals. The story is a remarkable account of how the final two survivors in the lifeboat Pi and a 450 pound Bengal Tiger brave odds to emerge the ultimate survivors of sea tragedy until they are washed ashore 7 months later!
The author builds the character of Pi in the initial part of the story, though it gets a little dragging in certain instances. Soon after the ‘Tsimtsum’ goes to the bottom of the ocean there’s no halting the pace of the story. The account is filled with copious tales of daily battles for survival added with picturesque details of the odds faced and endured at sea. With ample survival tips thrown in steadily, the author makes no bones about the fact that this book would serve to be a promising survival manual for those unfortunate readers who may find themselves in similar dire straits!!
I liked the concept of alpha-beta male that’s so vividly presented in the story, and which is central to the survival strategy – the sole reason behind the protagonist surviving 7 months of sharing a lifeboat with a Tiger. This was the first time I’d come across this concept and it was a real eye-opener that has great potential for use (beyond animals, of course!). This definitely calls for further detailed study and I’m already looking for good references.
The author gets to his funny-sarcastic best towards the ends of the story with the Japanese officials. If this part of the story were really true, it makes me wonder how the Japanese embassy decided to share the uncensored tapes to a writer; the author has sure made best use of the transcripts!!
In brief, Piscine “Pi” Molitor Patel’s family decides to sell-off their zoo in Pondicherry and take a Japanese freighter in a bid to start life anew in Canada. The freighter capsizes in the Pacific leaving behind a handful of survivors – Pi and four wild animals. The story is a remarkable account of how the final two survivors in the lifeboat Pi and a 450 pound Bengal Tiger brave odds to emerge the ultimate survivors of sea tragedy until they are washed ashore 7 months later!
The author builds the character of Pi in the initial part of the story, though it gets a little dragging in certain instances. Soon after the ‘Tsimtsum’ goes to the bottom of the ocean there’s no halting the pace of the story. The account is filled with copious tales of daily battles for survival added with picturesque details of the odds faced and endured at sea. With ample survival tips thrown in steadily, the author makes no bones about the fact that this book would serve to be a promising survival manual for those unfortunate readers who may find themselves in similar dire straits!!
I liked the concept of alpha-beta male that’s so vividly presented in the story, and which is central to the survival strategy – the sole reason behind the protagonist surviving 7 months of sharing a lifeboat with a Tiger. This was the first time I’d come across this concept and it was a real eye-opener that has great potential for use (beyond animals, of course!). This definitely calls for further detailed study and I’m already looking for good references.
The author gets to his funny-sarcastic best towards the ends of the story with the Japanese officials. If this part of the story were really true, it makes me wonder how the Japanese embassy decided to share the uncensored tapes to a writer; the author has sure made best use of the transcripts!!
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