Fan Letter to Yann Martel, author of Life of Pi

Yann Martel was surprised to open his mail one day and read a letter from a famous fan who enjoyed his novel Life of Pi. (For the record, at the end of the novel, the author asks readers whether they prefer his book with or without animals — a tiger named Richard Parker is one of the main characters.)

(In case you can’t read the handwriting, here is the text: Mr. Martel, My daughter and I just finished reading LIFE OF PI together. Both of us agreed we prefer the story with animals. It is a lovely book — an elegant proof of God and the power of storytelling. Thank you. Barack Obama)

Famous Fan Letter to Yann Martel, Author of Life of Pi

I’m a huge fan of Life of Pi by Yann Martel — and am looking forward to the Thanksgiving release of the film version directed by Ang Lee.

On this blog, I try to avoid discussions of politics and religion because I feel these topics are polarizing and not really what this site is about (we talk about writing, art, and culture) — but, in its way, this post touches on both politics and religion.

So, without further preamble, here is a fan letter Yann Martel received from a reader who enjoyed Life of Pi. (For the record, at the end of the novel, Martel asks readers whether they prefer his book with or without animals — a tiger named Richard Parker is one of the main characters.)

(In case you can’t read the handwriting, here is the text: Mr. Martel, My daughter and I just finished reading LIFE OF PI together. Both of us agreed we prefer the story with animals. It is a lovely book — an elegant proof of God and the power of storytelling. Thank you. Barack Obama)