I LOVE Richard Parker, and was enthralled on Pi's views and trials on training him so that he was not a meal himself..I WAS HOWEVER upset to read the ending of the book to find out that indeed his family was dead but not in the manner I had believed all along. I want a Bengal tiger to fish for and I want to go to Pi's magical Meercat Island - even if it is cannibalistic. I LOVE the fact that Pi's ideas on religion match mine in the way that I believe in God - but do not believe all of one religion or all of another but it fills my heart to see they are all interconnected if you just have your own faith and tolerance for other religions. This book to me was one of the best I have ever read..I am a speed reader that normally reads 3-5 books a week and retains very little except a for a feeling of the story. This book I took 2 weeks to read and lovingly poured over it as I cried or laughed out loud at what was happening. I bought it hook , line, and sinker while I was reading that Mr. Patl was a real man telling his real story..what a fantastic writer that took!!
Bottom Line....LOVED IT!