The conceit of Yann Martel's sprawling novel "Life of Pi" is one that feels foolish, maybe even unbelievable. It has one of the greatest sales pitch of the 21st century, where the narrator chooses to say that he has a story that will make you believe in God. Depending on how connected to your faith you are, that is an enticing promise that has the potential to make you see the wonder and awe in the world. With that said, the answer is interpretive, allowing the reader to somehow make the story of a Bengal Tiger stranded at sea with a Tamil boy (both born at a zoo in India) into this wondrous journey that turns the survival story into something comical, dramatic, and even spiritual. So much happens within these pages, though there's even more that's unseen. The results may not make you believe in God, but for those who can see the invisible lines that connect every aspect of the story, it's an affirmation that there are greater forces out there guiding us through life.
To fully appreciate this story, you will need to begin with the prologue that follows the unnamed writer on his quest to Pi Patel's story. Whether or not you believe it to be autobiographical of Martel, it's the story of a writer whose purpose in his career was starting to shake, where one idea was failing to become something more fruitful. During his travels, he became aware of the story that will take up the rest of the pages, allowing for this mythic figure to tell his story. Much like the unnamed writer, one has to wonder if this is real if it was based on actual truth. Similarly, everything that follows has questionable accuracy, but there is this drive in readers to believe that the experiences are genuine. By creating this mythology within fiction, it forces layers of questioning not only what's real, but what we're willing to accept in the form of a narrative.
What follows is an origin story that finds dozens, maybe even hundreds, of contradictory ideas, and it all ties into Pi's name. His name is actually Piscine Molitor Patel, named for a French swimming pool. This alone is an odd name for a Tamil child. However, when it becomes a crude joke, Piscine turns to math in order to make his name Pi, after the infinite number that creates a full circle. It's the perfect metaphor for how Pi sees the world, taking in everything reflective of the circle of life. He's willing to embrace all faiths, taking on their great teachings in order to appreciate their message. As his father would say, he's a few religions shy of being on holiday for the rest of his life. Still, there is reverence for everything, reflecting on how these ideas have the potential to teach good. Considering that he's a zoologist as well, the mix of spirituality and science are things that shouldn't go together, yet in Pi is this wonderful anomaly.
The crux of the story is in the second section where he's stranded at sea for 266 days. What's incredible is that for a story about the power of God, there's little to suggest shortcuts, of faith using some spiritual form of magic. Pi is struggling at sea with a Bengal Tiger named Richard Parker (long story), and his minutiae in getting through a day feel so meticulous and thought out that none of it feels disingenuous. Sure it's about a struggle between man and nature, but any spirituality is done in brief flashes of hope when things look the most desperate. In these moments, you're able to appreciate the coincidences of life, managing to survive through strength of the will as well as having that extra boost.
Through Pi's narration, you find every aspect of humanity coming through in ways that are ultimately powerful, making you see the awe through his eyes. This is one of the greatest concepts of the century, and his meticulous ability to mix science and religion without one being condescending shows a world that is much more interesting than what literature often displays. There are no supernatural twists (except for one questionable scene), though there is plenty to ponder over, wondering the luck of Pi as he's made it to safety. Then again, it's all that faith should be: something that you don't see but feel deep down inside, keeping you going in times of doubt. Faith isn't convenient, but something to give you encouragement when you need it. Even if there's a lot of religious references on a per-page basis, it's still not used as a novelty. This is genuine to the character.
Martel's gimmick may turn some off, though it's still one of the best novels of its kind. It may be tedious at times, even expressing doubt, but it all builds to this greater picture of how we all try to get through life, finding meaning and determining our own truths. Is Pi for real, or is the unnamed writer making this all up for profit? So many things are left with the reader to ponder over, and it's one that is satisfying on every page, making a boat ride into a place of self-reflection, making one ask about the powers in the world, reaffirming what we believe and seeing symbolism and heart where others might not. "Life of Pi" never wastes a word, managing to make a story so insular into an exciting adventure. If it doesn't make you believe in God, it will at least make you feel that there's lots of great, ambitious writing out there worthy of exploring. It may not all have a premise that sounds this goofy, but here's hoping that it has jsut as deep of a heart in its execution.
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