A novel about Pi Patel, a curious boy from Pondicherry in India whose family owns a zoo. He is drawn to several religions at once and sees no conflict between them. When the family decides to emigrate to Canada, their ship is lost at sea, and Pi finds himself in a lifeboat with a few animals, including a Bengal tiger. Most of the book follows his struggle to survive on the Pacific Ocean, using ingenuity, patience and faith. It is an adventure story, but also a meditation on belief, truth and the stories we choose to live by. It made Martel internationally famous.
Quotes
With one word, my name went from an elegant French swimming pool to a stinking Indian latrine — I was "Pissing" everywhere.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Thank you Lord Vishnu. Thank you for coming in the form of a fish and saving our lives. Thank you.
Hunger can change everything you ever thought you knew about yourself.
I can't risk my life every time I have to climb on the boat for supplies. It's time to settle this. If we're going to live together, we have to learn to communicate. Maybe Richard Parker can't be tamed — but with God's will he can be trained.