ABOUT THE BOOK

Author Yann Martel conceived of the story Life of Pi (2002) during his extended travels in India, reading castaway stories and survival tales. Life of Pi is a fantastical chronicle of the adventures of a young boy and his animal companions lost at sea. It has had a tumultuous journey since its arrival in print. The work features a discourse exploring survival, order, danger, chaos and captivity.

Yann Martel was born to French-Canadian parents in Spain. Before Life of Pi, he wrote two novels that were not well-received. With the almost instantaneous popularity of Life of Pi, Martel became a lively and outspoken figure and went on to write two more novels of note. According to Martel's talk with the Big Think, “When you have faith in anything it's just a disposition to be open and to trust and to move forward that way. And I find a view of life that entertains a transcendental that engages with the transcendental makes things wealthy. It also it makes things wealthier in their significance and it also it's a way that makes suffering more bearable”.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Zak Ahmed Uddin is a London-based writer who has written about the arts and fashion for both web and print.

Books in the “Life of PI” bookshelf created by Birthe Lisbeth Hunskjær-Nielsen