Book Review : The High Mountains of Portugal by Yann Martel

The fourth novel from the bestselling author of Life of Pi essentially comprises three interlinked novellas. In Lisbon in 1904, a young man named Tomás discovers an old journal. It hints at the existence of an extraordinary artefact that – if he can find it – would redefine history. Travelling in one of Europe’s earliest automobiles, borrowed from his wealthy uncle, he sets out in search of this strange treasure.
Thirty-five years later, a Portuguese pathologist devoted to the murder mysteries of Agatha Christie finds himself at the centre of a mystery of his own as he is drawn into the consequences of Tomás’s quest. Five decades later, a Canadian senator takes refuge in his ancestral village in northern Portugal, grieving the loss of his wife. But he arrives with an unusual companion: a chimpanzee. And there the century-old quest will come to an unexpected conclusion. Beautifully written, thought-provoking and often surprising, this is a masterful work.