Pi’s family is moving their zoo when the boat sinks and 16-year old Pi is left afloat in a lifeboat with four animals that includes a tiger.  Up to that point the book is slow to get into but persevere for this unique work is stunning.  It’s brutal, hopeful, humorous, philosophical, almost implausible and yet strangely believable.  A tale that will remain with you for a very long time and deserves another read.

Comparison: Mark Haddon (The Curious Case of the Dog in the Night-Time), Audrey Niffenegger (The Time Traveler’s Wife), Aravind Adiga (The White Tiger).

This is the Young Adult edition published by Walker Canongate.  To view the standard paperback edition published by Canongate of this book, click here.

Synopsis

After the tragic sinking of a cargo ship, a solitary lifeboat remains bobbing on the wild blue Pacific. The only survivors from the wreck are a sixteen-year-old boy named Pi, a hyena, a zebra (with a broken leg), a female orang-utan - and a 450-pound Royal Bengal tiger. The scene is set for one of the most extraordinary and best-loved works of fiction in recent years.

Reviews

A unique and original story, brillantly told - The Guardian

Martel's yarn is an unfailingly enjoyable blend of magical realism and Robinson Crusoe - The Independent on Sunday

A hilarious novel, full of clever tricks, amusing asides and grand originality. The Daily Telegraph A terrific book ... fresh, original, smart, devious, and crammed with absorbing lore. Margaret Atwood, The Sunday Times

Yann Martel is a vivid and entrancing storyteller - The Sunday Telegraph

Here is a writer with a talent as fabulous as the tale that he - and his Pi - have to tell - The Spectator

About the Author

Yann Martel was born in Spain in 1963 of Canadian parents. After studying philosophy at university, he worked at odd jobs and travelled before turning to writing. He is the author of the internationally acclaimed 2002 Man Booker Prize-winning novel Life of Pi, as well as the novel Self, the stories The Facts Behind the Helsinki Roccamatios, and the collection of letters to the Prime Minister of Canada What is Stephen Harper Reading?. Yann Martel lives in Saskatchewan, Canada.   Author photo © Alice Kuiper More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation