Chapter 92

In this chapter Pi and Richard arrive on an island made entirely of plant mass. There is only green, which Pi finds soothing as his favorite color but Pi thinks it to be an illusion until he steps on it and smells the plants. He falls to the ground and decides to taste the algae, it has a sugary coating and salty coating inside. Richard Parker also leaves the boat, Pi if afraid of the tiger claiming the island as his own, Pi returns to the boat after eating and resting.The next day, the two return to the island and eat again. After Pi returns to the boat, Richard Parker comes charging at him. He tries to stop him with the whistle, but the discomfort of the tiger forces him into the water where he swims toward the boat instead. Pi attempts walking for the first time again and they are feeling much healthier. After another day, Pi decides to explore the island a bit, seeing all kinds of ponds, trees and thousands of tiny meerkats. The meerkats are huddled around a pond snagging fish from below and Pi soon joins them by soaking the fresh water of the pond. After a few more days, Pi cleans out the lifeboat and explores the island more. He decides it must about 7 miles long and 20 miles around. As time passes, the two regain much of their health and strength. With the tiger regaining so much strength, Pi decides to resume training to keep him safe. He teaches the tiger how to jump through hoops, In the morning all of the furry little creatures crawl off of him and head for the ponds. He eventually brings supplies and continues sleeping in the trees, enjoying the meerkats’ company. One night, he notices a dead fish in the pond that causes the meerkats to yell. In the morning the dead fish is gone. Pi finds that the island may be carnivorous with a tree that holds a human tooth. He tests this by dropping a meerkat onto the algae at night and watching it scurry back up the tree. He decides that the island emits some kind of acid at night to digest whatever is still on it. It’s time to leave the island. When he leaves, he brings a plentiful supply of water, meerkats, and fish as well as some of the algae (though it dissolves at night in the acid). He waits for Richard Parker and when the tiger returns sets back out to wander the sea in his boat.