BOOK REVIEW:

THE LIFE OF PI

A delightful novel written by, Yann Martel.

This is an adventure story, circa 1977, of a teen aged Indian boy shipwrecked in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, for 292 days, whilst in rout to Canada from India with his family.

The young boy, Pi Patel, finds himself the sole human survivor in a twenty two foot life boat, along with a Zebra, Hyena, Orangutan, Rat, and an adult Bengal tiger.

Within the first day of the ordeal the Hyena kills the Rat, the Zebra, and the Orangutan; then annoys the Tiger and gets eaten itself. Pi manages to escape the wrath of the Hyena and the Tiger by spending the first couple of days astraddle of an oar cantilevered out over the water from the gunnels of the life boat.

Early on in the ordeal, Pi manages to establish himself as the Alpha between himself and the Tiger, as they establish their respective territorial domains within the life boat.

Throughout their survival ordeal, Pi cares for the welfare of both himself and the Tiger, to assure his own survival from the Tiger’s hunger.

The ingenuity and intelligence of Pi is remarkable, his basic survival instinct, his religious faith, and acute knowledge of animal behavior brings him through the ordeal.

I’ll not reveal any more details so as not to spoil it for anyone wishing to give it a read. I rate this book as a, double thumbs up.