Piscine Molitor Patel, known as Pi, grows up in Pondicherry, where his father runs a zoo. A curious, spiritual boy, he becomes a practising Hindu, Christian and Muslim all at once, to the confusion of the local priests. When his family decides to emigrate to Canada with some of their animals, they sail on a Japanese cargo ship that sinks in the Pacific.
Pi finds himself in a lifeboat with a wounded zebra, a hyena, an orangutan and a fully grown Bengal tiger called Richard Parker. Much of the novel describes his survival over months at sea: rationing supplies, fishing, catching rainwater, learning to establish dominance over the tiger, and coping with despair, hunger and moments of wonder, including a strange floating island.
Martel frames the story as one told to a writer who hears it is a tale that will make him believe in God, which signals the novel's interest in faith, storytelling and how people choose to understand suffering. It won the Booker Prize in 2002 and was adapted by Ang Lee into an Oscar-winning film.
Book details
| Author | Yann Martel |
|---|---|
| First published | 2001 |
| Original language | English |
| Genre | Literary fiction |
| Type | Fiction |
| Pages (approx.) | 319 |
| Setting | Pondicherry, India, and a lifeboat on the Pacific Ocean, 1970s |
| Awards | Booker Prize 2002 |
Themes
- Faith
- Survival
- Storytelling
- Animals and humans
- Truth
Who should read it
Readers who want an adventure story that doubles as a meditation on belief.