Yann Martel

Life of Pi

CA$130

Illustrated by Violeta Encarnación

Introduced By the author

A shipwreck, a boy, a Bengal tiger – and a story that will stay with you forever. This modern classic of survival, faith and imagination shimmers with Folio's lush, vibrant treatment that include illustrations by Violeta Encarnación.

Life of Pi

CA$130
Book Details
 
Presentation Box & BindingFull bound in printed and blocked paper
Printed and die-cut slipcase
Dimensions8¾ inches x 6¼ inches
FontSet in Apollo
Pages416 pages
AuthorYann Martel
Illustrated byVioleta Encarnación
Illustration4 full colour single page illustrations
2 double page illustrations and black-white double page title spread
Publication Date06/05/2025
PrintingFirst Printing
Editor's Notes
 
Shipwrecked and stranded at sea, a young boy and a fierce tiger are bound together in a desperate struggle for survival. Their journey on a makeshift raft is harrowing, but amid the peril moments of salvation appear in a shimmering storm of fish and a merciful downpour.

At its core, Life of Pi is not only a tale of adventure, but a poignant parable about faith, hope and the power of storytelling. Adapted into an acclaimed film and an award-winning play, this beloved novel is truly a contemporary classic.

This Folio edition, with a brand-new introduction by the author, is bursting with awe-inspiring illustrations by artist Violeta Encarnación. The cover is revealed through a slipcase that is slashed as though by a tiger's claws. Inside the book, Pi and Richard Parker's Pacific odyssey unfolds in a palette of inky blues, electric greens and deep oranges.
Synopsis
 
A lifeboat. A boy. A Bengal tiger. Lost at sea, Pi Patel clings to survival through sheer will, bound by an uneasy truce with the ferocious Richard Parker. His journey is a meditation on faith, fear and the blurred line between myth and reality. As the Pacific stretches endlessly before him, Pi faces hunger, madness and the limits of belief. But when his tale is questioned, one truth remains: sometimes, the story you choose to believe is the one that keeps you alive.

About the Illustrator

Violeta Encarnación

Violeta Encarnación is a Cuban artist based in New York City, fascinated with telling stories through her work. She is a passionate, award-winning illustrator who enjoys traveling between physical materials, digital media and animation. Designing compositions that play with proportions and colours, while telling a story from an unexpected perspective is one of her favourite things to experiment with in her work. An avid plant lover who is always pushing the limit on how much green her apartment can take, and a culinary enthusiast on the weekends.

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About the Illustrator

Violeta Encarnación

Violeta Encarnación is a Cuban artist based in New York City, fascinated with telling stories through her work. She is a passionate, award-winning illustrator who enjoys traveling between physical materials, digital media and animation. Designing compositions that play with proportions and colours, while telling a story from an unexpected perspective is one of her favourite things to experiment with in her work. An avid plant lover who is always pushing the limit on how much green her apartment can take, and a culinary enthusiast on the weekends.

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About the Illustrator

Violeta Encarnación

Violeta Encarnación is a Cuban artist based in New York City, fascinated with telling stories through her work. She is a passionate, award-winning illustrator who enjoys traveling between physical materials, digital media and animation. Designing compositions that play with proportions and colours, while telling a story from an unexpected perspective is one of her favourite things to experiment with in her work. An avid plant lover who is always pushing the limit on how much green her apartment can take, and a culinary enthusiast on the weekends.

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About the Illustrator

Violeta Encarnación

Violeta Encarnación is a Cuban artist based in New York City, fascinated with telling stories through her work. She is a passionate, award-winning illustrator who enjoys traveling between physical materials, digital media and animation. Designing compositions that play with proportions and colours, while telling a story from an unexpected perspective is one of her favourite things to experiment with in her work. An avid plant lover who is always pushing the limit on how much green her apartment can take, and a culinary enthusiast on the weekends.

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About the Illustrator

Violeta Encarnación

Violeta Encarnación is a Cuban artist based in New York City, fascinated with telling stories through her work. She is a passionate, award-winning illustrator who enjoys traveling between physical materials, digital media and animation. Designing compositions that play with proportions and colours, while telling a story from an unexpected perspective is one of her favourite things to experiment with in her work. An avid plant lover who is always pushing the limit on how much green her apartment can take, and a culinary enthusiast on the weekends.

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About the Illustrator

Violeta Encarnación

Violeta Encarnación is a Cuban artist based in New York City, fascinated with telling stories through her work. She is a passionate, award-winning illustrator who enjoys traveling between physical materials, digital media and animation. Designing compositions that play with proportions and colours, while telling a story from an unexpected perspective is one of her favourite things to experiment with in her work. An avid plant lover who is always pushing the limit on how much green her apartment can take, and a culinary enthusiast on the weekends.

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About the Author

Born in Spain in 1963, Yann Martel is best known for Life of Pi (2001, Folio 2025), the Booker Prize-winning novel that blends adventure with philosophical musings on faith and survival. Raised in Canada, he studied philosophy before turning to writing, a path that took him from short stories to globally celebrated novels. Life of Pi — which follows a boy stranded at sea with a tiger — became a modern classic, adapted into an award-winning film. Martel’s later works, including Beatrice and Virgil (2010) and The High Mountains of Portugal (2016), continue his fascination with storytelling, morality and the human condition. His prose, often rich with allegory, challenges readers to find deeper meaning in the seemingly impossible.