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Life of Pi

by Yann Martel

Life of Pi Cover

 

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

The son of a zookeeper, Pi Patel has an encyclopedic knowledge of animal behavior and a fervent love of stories. When Pi is sixteen, his family emigrates from India to North America aboard a Japanese cargo ship, along with their zoo animals bound for new homes. The ship sinks. Pi finds himself alone in a lifeboat, his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Soon the tiger has dispatched all but Pi, whose fear, knowledge, and cunning allow him to coexist with Richard Parker for 227 days while lost at sea. When they finally reach the coast of Mexico, Richard Parker flees to the jungle, never to be seen again. The Japanese authorities who interrogate Pi refuse to believe his story and press him to tell them "the truth." After hours of coercion, Pi tells a second story, a story much less fantastical, much more conventional — but is it more true?

Review:

"This breezily aphoristic, unapologetically twee saga of man and cat is a convincing hands-on, how-to guide for dealing with what Pi calls, with typically understated brio, 'major lifeboat pests.'" The New Yorker

Review:

"A work of wonder....[T]he kind of twist-and-turns spellbinder that's almost impossible to forget." Paul Evans, Book Magazine

Review:

"Martel's Life of Pi might sound ridiculous, but by the time Martel throws Pi out to sea, his quirkily magical and often hilarious vision has already taken hold....Martel is so mesmerized by Pi that one can't help but be enchanted too....Pi's lost-at-sea story never drags. The slow journey is spiked with fascinating survival scenes....Pi's story is so extraordinary that when he finally makes it ashore, he offers a comparatively boring version of the tale to two researchers, acknowledging that humans don't have much of a taste for the miraculous. This played-down version makes Pi's true tale, thanks to Martel's beautifully fantastical and spirited rendering, all the more tempting to believe." Suzy Hansen, Salon.com

Synopsis:

When his ship sinks, a teen emigrating with his family from India to North America finds himself alone in a lifeboat — his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger.

Synopsis:

Synopsis:

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK of 2002

Pi Patel, a God-loving boy and the son of a zookeeper, has a fervent love of stories and practices not only his native Hinduism, but also Christianity and Islam. When Pi is sixteen, his family and their zoo animals emigrate from India to North America aboard a Japanese cargo ship. Alas, the ship sinks — and Pi finds himself in a lifeboat, his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Soon the tiger has dispatched all but Pi. Can Pi and the tiger find their way to land? Can Pi's fear, knowledge, and cunning keep him alive until they do?

"An impassioned defense of zoos, a death-defying trans-Pacific sea adventure a la Kon-Tiki, and hilarious . . . : This audacious novel manages to be all of these." — The New Yorker

"Life of Pi could renew your faith in the ability of novelists to invest even the most outrageous scenario with plausible life." — The New York Times Book Review

"Life of Pi is a real adventure: brutal, tender, expressive, dramatic, and disarmingly funny. . . . It's difficult to stop reading when the pages run out." — San Francisco Chronicle

Yann Martel was born in Spain in 1963 of Canadian parents. He grew up in Costa Rica, France, Mexico and Canada, and has traveled extensively on his own. After studying philosophy at university, he worked variously as a dishwasher, tree planter and security guard. Then he began to write. When he's not living somewhere else, he lives in Montreal.

Synopsis:

This lavishly produced edition features 40 of Tomislav Torjanacs beautiful four-color illustrations, bringing "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel to splendid, eye-popping life. First published in 2002, the original work became an international bestseller and remains one of the most extraordinary and popular works of contemporary fiction.Harcourt Trade Publishers

About the Author

Yann Martel, the child of diplomats, grew up in Costa Rica, France, Mexico, Alaska, and Canada and as an adult has spent time in Iran, Turkey, and India. After studying philosophy at Trent University, he worked at odd jobs until he began making a living as a writer at the age of twenty-seven. He lives in Montreal.

What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 15 comments:

skylerhawkins95, December 5, 2011 (view all comments by skylerhawkins95)
Pi Patel is an all loving boy when it comes to God. Pi is very special when it comes to his faith, because he not only believes in one faith but three Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam. The reason he believes in all 3 of these religions, because as a boy he was pressured into which one to choose. Therefore instead of choosing one, he chose all 3 religions. Not only did Pi love God, but also his mother, father, and brother. His father owned a zoo in India which his family loves and adores, but with the inhumane people that abuse the animals, they have no choice but to move to North America. The Patel family gathered each other up along with the animals, and set sail on a Japanese cargo ship headed to Canada. While on the ship, Pi falls into a deep sleep and wakes up to the ship sinking along with confusing noises. He sleepily goes about the deserted boat trying to find someone. He goes outside to find crew members, and he is instantly thrown onto a lifeboat. Soon enough Pi finds himself with companions on the lifeboat including: a zebra, an orangutan, a zebra, and a humungous Bengal tiger. When the tiger has devoured everything but Pi, he must train the beast and use the survival skills he has learned in his past. The big question is will his survival skills be enough to survive the trials to come? Pi's only chance of surviving is not only training the tiger, but also finding a way to keep the predator away from himself. He will have to learn to fish, make fresh water, and most importantly find land. There is not only a predator on the boat, but also in the unknown waters below him. This novel will keep you intrigued until the very end, and sparks a great fealing of faith in your heart. -Matthew B.
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pumer1313, December 5, 2011 (view all comments by pumer1313)
Piscine Molitor Patel otherwise known as Pi Patel is from India. He had grown up in the city of Pondicherry and had many view on religion and couldn’t make up his mind to which one he liked. His parents finally got tired of his lack of decision making and had in mind to move to Canada. In India his dad had owned a zoo and couldn’t just leave his animals. He decided to sell his animals and the only people to take them were zookeepers in America. The only way he could transport the animals was by freighter across the Pacific. While on the boat he hears strange noises and finds himself frantically searching the ship for an exit. In the meantime tries to run back down the stairs to his family but is stopped by a wall of water. The boat was sinking! He runs to some crew members and is thrown into a life boat. What he doesn’t know is that it is more than just him in that boat. The crew members try to warn him but before he can do anything he is too far away from the sinking boat. He saw a tiger whose name was Richard Parker and helped on the boat without thinking. He finds himself going into a deep sleep which he will never get again for the rest of his survival. When he wakes up he finds a zebra and a hyena on the life boat with him. He also sees an orangutan floating on a huge pile of bananas and also pulls him on board. The hyena ends up killing the zebra and the orangutan. He knew that he was next to be killed by the hyena when Richard Parker wakes up and kills the hyena. From there on they live on the life boat for 227 days. They find an island that was carnivorous, went through a time without food, and ends up living with the tiger the whole time.
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
chadisawesome, December 2, 2011 (view all comments by chadisawesome)
The Life of Pi is an adventure you don’t want to miss out on. At first the book is somewhat slow and boring but don’t stop reading, you will regret it and not be inspired by this breath taking novel! As Pi is struggling to stay alive he goes through many obstacles that he soon faces. While I was reading this book, I just wanted to keep reading because I wanted to know what was going to happen so bad. This book was very confusing in some parts and you have to keep reading to understand it. In the end it all seems to come together though. My class was required to read this book and then every week we would get into our four person little groups and discuss what was happening in our book. Every week I was so excited to meet up with my group and talk about this adventurous book. I had to stop myself from reading ahead because I wanted to keep reading. If I had kept reading I might of accidently spoiled it for everyone else. One thing that I really took to heart in this book was the dedication Pi had to wanting to live even when times seem to be horrible and there was no hope. Pi always felt this sense of great hope even when things weren’t going his way. I suggest to all that pick this book up to read it and to keep reading it to the very last word. Yann Martel the author of the Life of Pi did a great job making the book suspenseful. Also, there was a major twist that got me and I had to really discuss it with my group to understand. Once I understood what actually happened I realized that I liked the book even more. I highly emphasize that you read this book, it will change you!
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View all 15 comments

Product Details

ISBN:
9780156030205
Author:
Martel, Yann
Publisher:
Harvest Books
Subject:
Literary
Subject:
Action & Adventure
Subject:
Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General
Subject:
Religious - General
Subject:
General Fiction
Subject:
General Juvenile Fiction
Subject:
Popular Fiction - Adventure
Copyright:
Edition Description:
Trade Paper
Publication Date:
20040531
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Grade Level:
from 9 to 12
Language:
English
Pages:
420
Dimensions:
6.88 x 4.19 in
Age Level:
13-17

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Related Subjects

Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z
Fiction and Poetry » Popular Fiction » Adventure
Languages » Foreign Languages » Spanish » Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z
Languages » Foreign Languages » Spanish » Fiction and Poetry » Popular Fiction » Adventure
Young Adult » General

Life of Pi Used Mass Market
0 stars - 0 reviews
$6.50 In Stock
Product details 420 pages Harvest Books - English 9780156030205 Reviews:
"Review" by , "This breezily aphoristic, unapologetically twee saga of man and cat is a convincing hands-on, how-to guide for dealing with what Pi calls, with typically understated brio, 'major lifeboat pests.'"
"Review" by , "A work of wonder....[T]he kind of twist-and-turns spellbinder that's almost impossible to forget."
"Review" by , "Martel's Life of Pi might sound ridiculous, but by the time Martel throws Pi out to sea, his quirkily magical and often hilarious vision has already taken hold....Martel is so mesmerized by Pi that one can't help but be enchanted too....Pi's lost-at-sea story never drags. The slow journey is spiked with fascinating survival scenes....Pi's story is so extraordinary that when he finally makes it ashore, he offers a comparatively boring version of the tale to two researchers, acknowledging that humans don't have much of a taste for the miraculous. This played-down version makes Pi's true tale, thanks to Martel's beautifully fantastical and spirited rendering, all the more tempting to believe."
"Synopsis" by , When his ship sinks, a teen emigrating with his family from India to North America finds himself alone in a lifeboat — his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger.
"Synopsis" by ,

"Synopsis" by ,
NATIONAL BESTSELLER

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK of 2002

Pi Patel, a God-loving boy and the son of a zookeeper, has a fervent love of stories and practices not only his native Hinduism, but also Christianity and Islam. When Pi is sixteen, his family and their zoo animals emigrate from India to North America aboard a Japanese cargo ship. Alas, the ship sinks — and Pi finds himself in a lifeboat, his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Soon the tiger has dispatched all but Pi. Can Pi and the tiger find their way to land? Can Pi's fear, knowledge, and cunning keep him alive until they do?

"An impassioned defense of zoos, a death-defying trans-Pacific sea adventure a la Kon-Tiki, and hilarious . . . : This audacious novel manages to be all of these." — The New Yorker

"Life of Pi could renew your faith in the ability of novelists to invest even the most outrageous scenario with plausible life." — The New York Times Book Review

"Life of Pi is a real adventure: brutal, tender, expressive, dramatic, and disarmingly funny. . . . It's difficult to stop reading when the pages run out." — San Francisco Chronicle

Yann Martel was born in Spain in 1963 of Canadian parents. He grew up in Costa Rica, France, Mexico and Canada, and has traveled extensively on his own. After studying philosophy at university, he worked variously as a dishwasher, tree planter and security guard. Then he began to write. When he's not living somewhere else, he lives in Montreal.

"Synopsis" by , This lavishly produced edition features 40 of Tomislav Torjanacs beautiful four-color illustrations, bringing "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel to splendid, eye-popping life. First published in 2002, the original work became an international bestseller and remains one of the most extraordinary and popular works of contemporary fiction.Harcourt Trade Publishers

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