2020 EDIT: Haven't read this one since university.
So. 'Life of Pi'.
Wow there is a lot of over-description and over-detailing of aspects, such as the main character's education - among every other thing which amounts to his whole life story; no little, irrelevant tidbit is left out - and animals and zoos and swimming pools and religion and the meaning of life and surviving, etc.
But strangely enough, I think these subjects, regardless of how they're written into the story, can still interest certain people. The writing can be muddled and all over the place - some parts feel like the author is less telling a story and more textbooking and preaching - but there is a calmness and euphoric atmosphere imprinted in the book. It's boring...but not distressingly so.
In my original review, I referred to reading 'Life of Pi' as akin to a religious experience, and I haven't changed my mind. I haven't grown to be too cynical. I wish to preserve a good, loving and open minded heart (we all need one). 'Life of Pi' can be life affirming to some people.
It has such a brilliant concept. If only it weren't so easy to skim through. If only it were shorter. If only the writing were more engaging and less, well, nearly everything else: ranging from judgemental preaching, to LOADS of telling the reader what a character is feeling - like in unnatural, cringey dialogue in the most bizarre circumstances - as opposed to showing. "Show, don't tell" doesn't apply to 'Life of Pi'.
It's easy to read 'Life of Pi' as being pretentious and daytime TV bestseller bait. The Times, Daily Mail, Daily Telegraph, New York Times, Independent, Metro, Observer, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times Book Review, Oprah, Richard and Judy - these will eat it up like hollow candy, and then they will wait for the next fad to insincerely consume and forget about a few months later.
I don't believe that 'Life of Pi' was written to be like that (despite the very first line being: 'My suffering left me sad and gloomy.' How did I not groan and throw the book away the first time I read that? I could have written a better line when I was thirteen!). The novel isn't without substance. It isn't without genuine feeling and hard work shown on every page. The theme about the parallels and kinship between the nature of man and the nature of beast is very clever. I believe Yann Martel did write from the heart, and the amount of research done is evident and absolutely staggering. The captivating power lurks.
Still, with the enormous word count and page count (319, yet it feels longer), plus the over-descriptions and bloated self-indulgence, maybe Martel could have benefited from using some restraint. And an editor.
Also I've now picked up on the fact that Pi, as a young child, had an uncle figure who stripped naked next to him (it's in the text) before putting on his trunks, every time he took Pi swimming. Alone. Our narrator is completely oblivious to anything... creepy about that. His parents had no objections as well. Yeah.
It is a little sexist/backwards when referring (as "fact") to both female humans and female animals, too.
'Life of Pi' comes recommended, even though I didn't enjoy it as much on a second read, years later, enthusiastically and wholeheartedly. At this time. In this day and age. It is a nice read... for someone on holiday. Or for someone who's young and therefore holds an abundance of patience and free time within them.
But...positive atmosphere and messages aside, it is not really something I want or need right now.
Final Score: 3.5/5
Original Review:
Alright Yann Martel, you got me. You got me good.
'Life of Pi' is a story about faith, losing and gaining trust - with none of the pixie dust. It's one of those books that is so delightful and so out-there that it might just be true. I love it when an author can make me believe in things I'd never even thought much about before. Whatever religion the reader is associated with - whatever beliefs he or she holds dear to his or her heart - 'Life of Pi' is a treat for any heart.
My aunt gave me this book. She wanted to know what I'd think of it, since she didn't finish it. I can understand why some people might be put off by the story - it's not so much the detailing of animal life, or the religious speeches (that don't come across as that preachy to me). No, it's the middle of the book. There is only so much you can write about when your setting is on a small lifeboat in the middle of the never-changing sea.
I admit to having found the middle somewhat dragging and repetitive after a bit, but Martel's writing - and the atmosphere and intense imagery he creates - kept me reading. It was the beginning and end of 'Life of Pi' I loved the most. They tell of Pi's life before and after he got tragically stranded in the Pacific on a lifeboat, all alone with cargo animals; most dangerously, an adult Bengal tiger. What I found to be endearing about the middle part is that Pi (the adorable protagonist) is struggling to survive externally and internally with the unpredictable tiger. His faith is challenged, and his need for human survival changes his mood like the weather. It is instinct; like animals use all the time.
For example, he is a vegetarian, but he must eat meat to prevent starvation. He ends up doing things he never would have done back in his old home in India. Man and beast meet and battle one another in more ways than one. I felt connected to Pi, and the suspense of his story and character is brilliant.
As an added bonus, I love animals and swimming pools. The descriptions of zoo life and famous pools at the beginning of the book are beyond charming. They add relevant substance and shape Pi as a character - up until his extraordinary story about both faith and reasoning as being necessary for survival.
I dare say that 'Life of Pi' will change the lives of some people, make them not only think about what they believe in, but tolerate others for believing in something different. Faith in any god and in humanity is the heart and driving force of this novel.
After finishing 'Life of Pi' I was left in stunned silence - a good sign that I'd just read a great book. I felt whole: full of light and wonder. I was also surprised by how many times I laughed out loud at some passages. When I look back I discover the amount of symbolism and foreshadowing the author left throughout the story. So 'Life of Pi' continues to pleasantly surprise me.
Yann Martel tells a great story, but he also makes the reader think along the journey - a mark of a good writer of experience.
Wonderfully written, lovable, tragic yet uplifting, funny, and highly clever and imaginative, I recommend 'Life of Pi'. Like my aunt, you might not be able to get into it as easily as I did, but it is worth a try.
Final Score: 4.5/5
Edit: I saw the film on the plane on my holiday to Africa. I may have to watch it again properly as its own film and away from my book-biased opinion (and it's not great to watch films in noisy planes on small screens anyway), but I still thought it was good. It followed the book well, despite adding a few unnecessary elements (like the forgotten love interest - romance is not needed to make a story sell!). A sense of wonder and human struggle came across clearly on screen - the SFX did not take up or distract from the life of Pi; in fact it elevated the colour of the book's spiritual themes. Good job, Ang Lee.
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