My Book of Choice for January - Category: Fiction

In the enormous jeep that took us inside the Calauit Game Preserve and Wildlife Sanctuary last May, I asked my sister, "Rach, maganda ba?" pointing to the book in her bag. It was the Life of Pi, a ubiquitous book I've seen in the best-sellers shelf in Fully Booked two years ago. She nodded, tucking her upper lip to form a smile that said sobra. "Eh bakit P50 lang ang tag price nito?!?" I said, noticing the small round sticker with a hand-written CLP 50 on the front cover. She shrugged and told me the synopsis of the book. It instantly piqued my curiosity. I asked if I can borrow the book after she's finished with it. Sabi n'ya, "Ate bilisan mo lang ha. Sa library ng school yan."

Nine months later, it's still with me. I tried to read it last June but one third through the book, my excitement waned. I just couldn't understand how Pi could embrace three different religions. And where's the damned tiger?!?! Isn't this supposed to be a story about a little boy and a Bengal tiger?

And it is.

The Life of Pi is about a boy who survived 200+ days at sea on a boat. He was a son of a zookeeper in Pondicherry, India who was going to migrate to Canada, and they decided to bring the whole zoo with them. But four days out of Manila, the ship broke down. His family died, along with the rest of the Chinese crew and other animals. The only reason why Pi survived was because he was thrown into a lifeboat. But he wasn’t alone. He had an orangutan, a hyena, a zebra, and a Bengal tiger as fellow castaways. And so goes the story.

I liked this book very much because the author explained how he came about writing this book. It was actually the story of an old man who knew Pi when he was young. Yann Martel and the old man met in a coffee shop, and after knowing that Yann Martel was a writer, he said, “I have a story for you. A story that will make you believe in God.”

And really, to a skeptic, Pi’s story will make you believe in God. Ang ganda lang talaga. =) =) =)

Allow me to share some snippets from the book that I came to love:

The Pondicherry Zoo was the source of some pleasure and many headaches for Mr. Santosh Patel, founder, owner, director, head of a staff of fifty-three, and my father.

To me, it was paradise on earth. I have nothing but the fondest memories growing up in a zoo. I lived the life of a prince. What maharaja's son had such vast, luxuriant grounds to play about? What palace had such a menagerie? My alarm clock during my childhood was a pride of lions. They were no Swiss clocks, but the lions could be counted upon to roar their heads off between five-thirty and six every morning. Breakfast was punctuated by the shrieks and cries of howler monkeys, hill mynahs and Moluccan cockatoos. I left for school under the benevolent gaze not only of Mother but also of bright-eyed otters and burly American bison and stretching and yawning orang-utans. I looked up as I ran under some trees, otherwise peafowl might excrete on me. Better go by the trees that sheltered the large colonies of fruit bats; the only assault there at that early hour was the bats' discordant concerts of squeaking and chattering. On my way out I might stop by the terraria to look at some shiny frogs glazed bright, bright, green, or yellow and deep blue, or brown and pale green. Or it might be birds that caught my attention: pink flamingos or black swans or one-wattled cassowaries, or something smaller, silver diamond doves, Cape glossy starlings, peach-faced lovebirds, Nanday conures, orange-fronted parakeets. Not likely that the elephants, the seals, the big cats or the bears would be up and doing, but the baboons, the macaques, the mangabeys, the gibbons, the deer, the tapirs, the llamas, the giraffes, the mongooses were early risers. Every morning before I was out the main gate I had one last impression that was both ordinary and unforgettable: a pyramid of turtles; the iridescent snout of a mandrill; the stately silence of a giraffe; the obese, yellow open mouth of a hippo; the beak-and-claw climbing of a macaw parrot up a wire fence; the greeting claps of a shoebill's bill; the senile, lecherous expression of a camel. And all these riches were had quickly, as I hurried to school.

(from pages 17-18 of the book, Life of Pi)

There are so many dog-eared pages I marked as remarkable writing, some even whole chapters. To write them all would be to invite a copyright violation. This book has seen me smiling and imagining in the gym's lounge area, laughing in the elevator, wide-eyed and incredulous in my favorite yogurt place, and tearing up in the comforts of our bed. It was Pi's perception of God that endeared me to him, this boy who felt responsible to take care of an animal that would consider him as prey.

Chapter 74 is my most favorite of all.When Pi tried to put his faith into practice, he would do religious rituals to comfort and remind himself that he was still alive.

"But it was hard, oh, it was hard. Faith in God is an opening up, a letting go, a deep trust, a free act of love - but sometimes it was so hard to love. Sometimes my heart was sinking so fast with anger, desolation and weariness, I was afraid it would sink to the very bottom of the Pacific and I would not be able to lift it back up.
At such moments I tried to elevate myself. I would touch the turban I had made with remnants of my shirt and I would say aloud, "THIS IS GOD'S HAT!"
I would pat my pants and say aloud, "THIS IS GOD'S ATTIRE!"
I would point to Richard Parker and say aloud, "THIS IS GOD'S CAT!"
I would point to the lifeboat and say aloud, "THIS IS GOD'S ARK!"
I would spread my hands wide and say aloud, "THESE ARE GOD'S WIDE ACRES!"
I would point at the sky and say aloud, "THIS IS GOD'S EAR!"
And in this way I would remind myself of creation and of my place in it.

But God's hat was always unravelling. God's pants were falling apart. God's cat was a constant danger. God's ark was a jail. God's wide acres were slowly killing me. God's ear didn't seem to be listening.

(page 263-264 of the book, life of Pi)

I finished the book third week of January and I didn't want to hurry on to the next book even if I was behind schedule. I challenged myself to read 50 books this year, which means I have to read four to five books a month. But just like a good movie, the Life of Pi affected me so much that I shared it to a bible study group. I said to watch out for the movie in December this year. It's gonna cast Toby Maguire as Yann Martel.

It's time to return the book to my sister's school library. Buti nalang hindi kelangan ng teachers ng borrower's card or else ang laki ng fine ni Rachel. :o) As far as the book goes, it's a great book to choose to start my 2012 Reading Challenge.;) Good job, Yann Martel.:)