Besides having an interesting story, my favorite books contain symbolic depth, resonance, and a generous sprinkle of what can only be described as "magic".
A "magic" novel is one in which the author has told us of events that do not align with our conventional experiences and logic, yet has done so in such a convincing fashion that we believe we may be hearing the truth.
Yann Martel's "Life of Pi" is such a novel.
Imagine being stranded for 227 days on a life-boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Now imagine having to share that life-boat with a tiger, a hyena, a orangutan, and a zebra.
Utterly ridiculous, isn't it? Yet somehow, Martel convinces us that it just might be possible to survive it after all. Magical story-telling.
The beginning of the novel provides details of the main character's childhood, including his unusual personal decision to combine three religions; Catholicism, Hinduism, and Islam. This is important because the remainder of this adventure challenges and confirms the doctrines of all these faiths.
But in the end, Pi understands that the authorities may not be able to take the leap of faith required to believe such a fantastic story and, almost out of sympathy, provides them (and the readers) with a second, more plausible accounting of his ordeal. Which version are you prepared to believe?
An interesting background note is on the name chosen for the Bengal tiger in the story, Richard Parker.
Richard Parker was an actual person who had the misfortune of being a cabin boy on the yacht Mignonette, sunk off the coast of Western Africa on 1884. The entire four man crew, including Captain Tom Dudley, escaped to a life-boat where they drifted with little food and water for the next nineteen days. At that point, the three men killed and ate the 17 year-old Parker. Five days later, they were rescued and returned to England, where they were put on trial for murder.
What happened to them? There is a very good book on the entire true story of Richard Parker, called "The Custom of the Sea" by Neil Hanson. If you're interested, I can lend you a copy.
In "Life of Pi" Martel has paid homage to the real Richard Parker by giving him his reincarnation as a 450 pound Bengal Tiger. Now the hunted has become the hunter!
After winning the Booker Prize, the value of first edition copies of "Life of Pi" has skyrocketed. It's hard to believe a book published only a few years ago (2001) can now command prices in excess of $1,000! Mind you, that's still chicken-feed compared to a signed first of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, which will run you close to $15,000!!!
But hyper-moderns are a subject for another day.
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