The High Mountains of Portugal by Yann Martel, author of Life of Pi, is a modern day fable in three parts: Homeless, Homeward, and Home. As these titles suggest, the novel sets the reader off on a very strange search for home. Magical, philosophical, at times absurd, filled with magic realism, Martel’s unique writing and storytelling doesn’t disappoint.

Following three generations of men in search of answers, each after suffering great loss, the novel begins in Lisbon in 1904 and ends in the present day. Did I mention there are chimpanzees and apes? Highly inventive and perhaps too strange for some, I found myself on the fence about whether or not I truly loved this novel. What is undeniable is Martel’s gift as a writer and his beautiful use of language; this is almost enough.