Just another blog?

I got this book as a 'Christmas gift'. I had heard a lot about it over the years and its story-line was amusing, not to mention that it tingled my patriotic nerves to know that it had an Indian boy as the protagonist (and no Indian author!). Finally, I got to read it - I finished at, more or less, one go, though I should concede I was way too jobless - the only breaks were when my mom offered something to eat!

The book is quite good, written in an amazingly simple style with the capacity to convey so many of those 'great truths' that we know, but never can express. The most fascinating thing about the writing was how a Canadian author had somehow gotten into the head of a South-Indian vegetarian school-going boy - his tastes and views and perceptions matched either mine or what I knew was common. At one point in time I was wondering if Pi Patel was in many aspects .... me.

Though I read most of the first half of the book purely following the aesthetics of the writing, I got involved in the story after the ship-wreck. Towards the end, it suddenly started disturbing me - it was no longer the objective narrative of an ordinary boy in extra-ordinary circumstances. I had to re-read many passages to understand what was being said during those hallucinatory phases that Pi was having when he became blind! Adding to my trauma was my firm view at that point that Pi Patel was a real person, and that book was merely an artistic biography. I am still not sure if Yann Martel's 'Author's Note' is also fictitious.

For giving me a true shock that I never saw coming I should applaud the author - I usually pride myself in my ability to see through surprise endings!

Some of the ideas in the book are pretty interesting -

1) "I have heard nearly as much nonsense about zoos as I have about God and religion. Well-meaning but misinformed people think animals in the wild are 'happy' because they are 'free' ... " - The whole part where he disses zoo-haters without losing objectivity is well-written.

2) The most dangerous animal is Animalus anthropomorphicus - any animal seen through human eyes.

3) The whole section on why he is a 'Hindu' because he was born one is brilliant - I always wanted to express that idea without having to feel apologetic or having to argue the superiority and inclusiveness of Hindu philosophies; Yann has given me some ideas now! In fact, all his passages on religiosity are awesome - especially why he hates agnostics but is OK with atheists!

A must read.