The Robe by Lloyd C. Douglas

What a joy it was to rediscover this book! Our book club read Magnificent Obsession by the same author, and the cover noted this other book he had written. I smiled in recognition of an old friend...I had discovered this book in the library at Redwood Junior High when I was 13 and had loved it. I thought, I have to read this again to see if it still is as faith-promoting now as it was for me then.
The story is set in Jesus' time, and tells the story of the Roman soldier who won the Savior's robe in a dice game right after his crucifixion. The story is fascinating because it describes life and characters from that time in history. It was fascinating to learn some Roman history as well as glimpsing what every day life and travel may have been like in that time. A joy to read and a compelling story!
I'm also impressed that at such a young age I could understand and appreciate such difficult vocabulary and an involved story. It's no short book...but the characters move the story along magnificently. I was sad when it ended...
Somehow the author conveys the spirit of Christ's teachings through his apostles in a simple and powerful way. As his followers try to live lives of compassion, kindness, and forgiveness, we learn of their struggles and realize...they were not so very different than we are!

Life of Pi by Yann Martel

This is an amazing story! It started off a little slowly and without my immediate strong engagement. But it slowly grew on me, and then suddenly, I was hooked! The voice of the main character, Pi, is so endearing and intelligent; so like many young Indian people I have known, that I was totally charmed. The humor is delightful and clever. His foray into religion resonated with my own experience in many ways, and that was fun. The conversation between the Christian, Hindi, and Muslim as they discover Pi's divided devotion, is CLASSIC! Quite enjoyable and deeply truthful... And Pi's story of survival is so very engaging. Using his wits as he floats across the Pacific with his tiger is fascinating. There are so many subtleties that I'm sure I missed that I'm going to read it again.
It's an incredibly creative and original story, too. I marveled at the way the story unfolded and the way things connected and reconnected. It was also amazing to read about how Pi's survival ordeal brought him to a deeper understanding of being human...and what people will do to survive. As he surprises himself with his reactions, it's so enlightening. I could easily believe and understand how people could do the unthinkable; his reflections help us see the possibilities in us all.
There are some poetic descriptions of the universe and his state of mind as he's floating...the descriptions of the sky, sun, and wind are breathtaking.There's also a lot of biology here and zoology included. I wonder how accurate it is? That will be my next little Google task...to see how authentic these are. They felt very authentic, but the tree growing around human teeth did cause me to question whether this was imagination or possibility!