Book review "Life of Pi" - Yann Martel

[99_hearts]

Two journal entries in two days? Whaaaaat? I have never heard the likes of it! lol, I must be on a roll. Well let's just hope I keep this up, hn?

Comments

[maju01]

I started this but couldn't finish it. I found it to be a more or less random collection of words and therefore almost incomprehensible and certainly not at all gripping.

[99_hearts]

Oh well, have you read any of his other work?

[maju01]

No, but maybe I should. My daughter loved "Life of Pi" and I started reading it on her recommendation. Perhaps it's a younger person's book?

[99_hearts]

Well it could be, Pi is 16 and they do teach this book at schools.

[little_missy]

I read this book a few years ago and I couldn't put it down. Not normally my sort of book but it was recommended to me and I loved it.

[99_hearts]

Yeah, I found the same. It was recommended by my old teacher and I found it to be one of the best reads this year :D

[herbpixie]

I finished this book yesterday. I found it riveting and well-written. His color imagery rivals Hardy's. It was exciting, and I couldn't put it down. I finished it in two days.

However. While I would still recommend it, my basic philosophical differences from the author (I am an atheist) prevent me from listing it as a favorite. It's a good example of pantheism, but I felt that, at best, the author is condescending to the non-faithful (atheists) and downright hostile towards agnostics. Isn't that the sort of intolerance between faiths that the book rails against?

[inverarity]

I'm curious about this, because it's something I've read in other reviews as well. I'm an atheist too, and while I don't expect that everything I read will validate my worldview, I'm not sure I want to read a book whose moral is that I'm wrong and foolish. Is it enjoyable despite this, or am I going to be gritting my teeth at the author's preachiness?

[herbpixie]

I'd still recommend it. It's well-written, and I did enjoy it. A good chunk of it is an exciting adventure story about a kid lost at sea.

The author's philosophy about atheists is that we have faith in science and are only slightly misguided. His view on agnostics is much less tolerant. That's not the overall moral of the book--just a side note, really. The book is more about the positive elements of pantheism. I would list it as a favorite if not for the hypocrisy of preaching tolerance while looking down on atheists and agnostics.

[glassbomb]

That was my issue with this book as well- besides the fact that I found it corny and barely coherent. I did not miss his snide line about agnostics nor did I appreciate it. If I'm remembering correctly, he condescendingly indicated that atheists were misguided but still better than agnostics for taking some kind of moral stand even if it was, in his view, the wrong one. He equated agnostics with being wishy-washy or cowardly.

Ugh, I hate Life of Pi. I had to read it for school and I threw it across the room at one point.