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ambivalentneb's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
It was a good book, but there are two interpretations one of author intent and one of reader interpretation. The one of reader interpretation is greatly better than the other in my opinion. I ranked this one on the author’s intent though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry
Moderate: Grief, Cannibalism, and Death of parent
emilyxjoyce's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
1.75
This book just was not for me. I wanted to like it, but it was a very tedious read and at times I was disturbed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Cannibalism
Moderate: Gore and Death of parent
Minor: Religious bigotry
deathmetalheron's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Never has a book that effectively describes one of the most repetitive existence in the most fascinating and engaging fashion. The vast majority of chapters are essentially "man on boat in ocean lives" but the book is shockingly easy to get through and was a certified page-turner.
Life of Pi is one of those books you wish you read in high school, you hope your English teachers assigns. This should be The Great Gatsby, the one book where everyone at school goes and actually unironically loves it. It's a bona fide classic.
What makes a book truly a classic is that it has enough depth for the scholar, but can easily be enjoyed by a pedestrian reader. There is so much metaphor and symbolism to be read into, Pi's role as a storyteller/unreliable narrator can be questioned, whether or not his animal friends represent concepts or other people--but like Pi in his interview at the one, he asks which story is better. The one with the tiger, of course. Honestly, you could hack off the third part and this book would still be incredible, maybe not as deep, but still incredible.
I think the most brilliant part of the ending is a part I didn't see touched on often enough--Richard Parker leaving Pi on the Mexican beach unceremoniously. It shows that it truly was a relationship of convenience, there is no "boy and his big cat" element here, they were two kindred spirits. It is excellent for a book that clearly loves animals and their lives to establish that wild animals are still wild. But it also plays into the concept the tiger is some sort of survival instinct/id of Pi and as soon as he finds civilization again it leaves, no longer needed.
Life of Pi is one of those books you wish you read in high school, you hope your English teachers assigns. This should be The Great Gatsby, the one book where everyone at school goes and actually unironically loves it. It's a bona fide classic.
What makes a book truly a classic is that it has enough depth for the scholar, but can easily be enjoyed by a pedestrian reader. There is so much metaphor and symbolism to be read into, Pi's role as a storyteller/unreliable narrator can be questioned, whether or not his animal friends represent concepts or other people--but like Pi in his interview at the one, he asks which story is better. The one with the tiger, of course. Honestly, you could hack off the third part and this book would still be incredible, maybe not as deep, but still incredible.
I think the most brilliant part of the ending is a part I didn't see touched on often enough--
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Gore, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Excrement, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Grief, Religious bigotry, and Murder
kanjichris's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Gore, Cannibalism, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
melodyseestrees's review against another edition
The audiobook did not help me get past the religious overtones and graphic animal harm. When you are not bored and being preached at you are being slapped in the face with some cruelty towards animals.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Torture, Blood, Excrement, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Religious bigotry
melodyseestrees's review
I tried so hard and yet I longed for the tiger to eat Pi's face so the misery would end. This book is wildly not for me. I cannot stand the animal violence and casual cruelty. I found the religious overtones frustrating. This is a book that was not meant for me and spent way too many years on my TBR.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Torture, Blood, Excrement, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Religious bigotry
gabrielleclarke05's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Very good, I just wish it didn’t take half of the book to actually get into the plot but after that it was great. I enjoyed the characters and the twist was fun the pacing was just off
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
phantomgecko's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Do you like novels that also infodump? Are you interested in zoos, cast away survival, or religion? I didn't expect to learn so much about those things, but I was delighted when it happened. It slows the pace down dramatically, but I like learning about things this way.
If I'd read this instead of listening to it, I'd've probably cried. It is a heartwrenching story while still being inspiring and hopeful. The ending left me feeling a little bereaved. Tbh, that's one of my favorite ways for a novel to leave me.
If I'd read this instead of listening to it, I'd've probably cried. It is a heartwrenching story while still being inspiring and hopeful. The ending left me feeling a little bereaved. Tbh, that's one of my favorite ways for a novel to leave me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent
nick13's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Look, I know this might be a bit of a hot take but this book is just...not good. If there was a better way to phrase it I would. There were so many details in this story that were just unnecessary, like that part where he lists every single thing he has on hand. It's not that I like a slow book, but like sometimes I'm just like, why are these twenty pages of nothing here? You know what I mean? And maybe I'm a bit (more like a lot) biased because I watched the movie first. Personally, most movies based on books never even strike close to what the book achieves but - how do I phrase this? - this book feels like the skeleton, the backbone that keeps the book together, and for that, I love this book, but the movie is the skin that makes it all complete. The movie is this beautiful masterpiece that takes out all of the unnecessary from the book, putting in parts that make it better, and keeps that masterful twist ending!
Basically what I'm saying is just watch the movie, it is one I always think about and is at least top ten in my favorite movies of all time and this book is, plainly, pretty less than mid-tier.
Basically what I'm saying is just watch the movie, it is one I always think about and is at least top ten in my favorite movies of all time and this book is, plainly, pretty less than mid-tier.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gore, and Cannibalism
Minor: Racism and Religious bigotry
zoiejanelle's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
[originally read in high school] another life-changing read. totally altered how i view religion, karma, and the power of the universe. will definitely re-read now that i'm an adult, but i truly loved this book (and it's way better than the movie)!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Religious bigotry, and Medical trauma