After a shipwreck, sixteen-year-old Pi Patel finds himself adrift in a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

Martel's novel blends survival adventure with philosophical and spiritual exploration. The fantastical elements of the story – the talking animals, the carnivorous island – raise questions about faith, storytelling, and the nature of reality.

The reader is left to decide which version of Pi's story is true, highlighting the power of belief and the subjective nature of truth. It is a powerful fable of hope.