Life of Pi by Yann Martel (2001, 326 pgs.)

Life of Pi is part adventure story, part zoology lesson, and part philosophical musing. It is the winner of the Man Booker Prize, and when this is announced with a big gold circle on the cover, a reader has high expectations. During the first part of the book we are introduced to Piscine Molitor Patel (shortened to Pi for obvious reasons), a young boy from India, the son of a zookeeper, who embraces three major religions: Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity. I loved this part of the book--it's quirkiness, humor, and the different religious perspectives that are explored. Since I have started rating books on Shelfari and my blog, I find myself thinking throughout the book how many stars it will get, and it often changes throughout the book. In the beginning I was thinking, "This is such a cool book! Five stars all the way!!" And then his family and some of their zoo animals needed to emigrate to Canada by ship, the ship sank, and Pi and a few animals, including a Bengal tiger are the only survivors. And I was bored. (Uh-oh! Down to three stars!) For me there were too many details about how he survived on the boat for 227 days. And the account of this is the bulk of the book. Then the very end entertained me a bit more--a humorous interview of Pi by members of the Japanese Ministry of Transport in trying to determine the fate of the ship that sank (sunk?). This is were the message of the book comes full circle, although it is open-ended and makes you think rather than come to any firm conclusions.
This book was exactly 100 chapters. That thrills me, but I couldn't say why!

The final verdict (drum roll, please . . . ):

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

This is one of those books that I don't want to say much about because part of the joy of reading it is in the unfolding of the story. In general I can say that it is a portrayal of a woman named Offred who lives in the future, dystopian society of Gilead. The story is riveting (it helps that this is one of my favorite genres), and the writing is genius. I will throw you a few gems:

"I lie in bed, still trembling. You can wet the rim of a glass and run your finger around the rim and it will make a sound. This is what I feel like: this sound of glass. I feel like the word shatter. I want to be with someone."

"I know where I am, and who, and what day it is. These are the tests, and I am sane. Sanity is a valuable possession; I hoard it the way people once hoarded money. I save it, so I will have enough when the time comes."

Maybe the best description of the story can be given in this passage from Offred, the narrator:

"I wish this story were different. I wish it were more civilized. I wish it showed me in a better light, if not happier, then at least more active, less hesitant, less distracted by trivia. I wish it had more shape. I wish it were about love, or about sudden realizations important to one's life, or even about sunsets, birds, rainstorms, or snow. . .
I'm sorry there is so much pain in this story. I'm sorry it's in fragments, like a body caught in crossfire or pulled apart by force. But there is nothing I can do to change it."

Nothing needs to be changed about this story. I enjoyed every single page, even though it took me far beyond my usual PG-rated bubble. (It is included in the American Library Association's list of most challenged books of 1999, and is number 37 on the "100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000," due to parental disapproval of the content.) Nonetheless, I am anxious to read more of her writing.