"Life of Pi" by Yann Martel

"Life of Pi" is a book about the survival of a 16 year old Indian boy, Pi Patel. His family owns the Pondecherry zoo. He lives an interesting life amoung his favorite animals (rhinos, orangutans, etc). There's even a large Bengal tiger.

One thing leads to another his family decides to move from India to China. His family & most of the animals board a large ship to head off for their new lives. The ship sinks (I'm not spoiling the book....you get more than this from the write-up on the back). Pi ends up adrift on the ocean with a zebra, an orangutan, a hyena & a tiger. The rest is pure adventure.

This is a wonderful story of survival. You're never sure exactly what is fact or fiction but regardless it's a great read. I give it 4 stars out of 5.

"Ask Me Anything" by Francesca Delbanco

Rosalie Preston is a wanna-be actress who lives in New York. She works at GirlTalk magazine answering the "Annies Answers" column. She belongs to an acting troupe called "First Born" but feels like she's not a "real actor" because she has her job at GirlTalk. She's not really suffering for her art. As some of the others in her troupe become more famous, she has to come to terms with her own jealousy.

One way she deals with it is to start a slightly inappropriate relationship with her friend's married father. She withdraws from her group b/c of both the relationship and her jealousy. There's more but I've told enough.

Yet another "coming of age" book. Not sure how I keep picking them! This was a pretty good read. Rosalie is a decent person but she gets a little sideways every once in a while. We've all been there....your friend gets ahead and you get jealous. She knows she shouldn't be but she can't help it.

I give this book 3 stars out of 5.