{"product_id":"9781682450512","title":"The Elephants in My Backyard: A Memoir","description":"\u003cb\u003eRajiv Surendra was filming \u003ci\u003eMean Girls\u003c\/i\u003e, playing the beloved rapping mathlete Kevin Gnapoor, when a cameraman insisted he read Yann Martel’s \u003ci\u003eLife of Pi\u003c\/i\u003e. So begins his \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e“lovely and human” (Jenny Lawson, author of \u003ci\u003eFuriously Happy) \u003c\/i\u003etale of \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eobsessively pursuing a dream, overcoming failure, and finding meaning in life.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance. I found myself standing dangerously close to the edge of a cliff. Far below me was an incredible abyss with no end in sight. I could turn back and safely return to where I had come from, or I could throw caution to the wind, lift my arms up into the air . . . and jump.” —From \u003ci\u003eThe Elephants in My Backyard\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhat happens when you spend ten years obsessively pursuing a dream, and then, in the blink of an eye, you learn that you have failed, that the dream will not come true?\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eIn 2003, Rajiv Surendra was filming \u003ci\u003eMean Girls\u003c\/i\u003e, playing the beloved rapping mathlete Kevin Gnapoor, when a cameraman insisted he read Yann Martel’s \u003ci\u003eLife of Pi\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eMesmerized by all the similarities between Pi and himself—both are five-foot-five with coffee-colored complexions, both share a South Indian culture, both lived by a zoo—when Rajiv learns that\u003ci\u003e Life of Pi\u003c\/i\u003e will be made into a major motion picture he is convinced that playing the title role is his destiny.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eIn a great leap of faith Rajiv embarks on a quest to embody the sixteen-year-old Tamil schoolboy. He quits university and buys a one-way ticket from Toronto to South India. He visits the sacred stone temples of Pondicherry, he travels to the frigid waters off the coast of rural Maine, and explores the cobbled streets of Munich. He befriends Yann Martel, a priest, a castaway, an eccentric old woman, and a pack of Tamil schoolboys. He learns how to swim, to spin wool, to keep bees, and to look a tiger in the eye. All the while he is really learning how to dream big, to fail, to survive, to love, and to become who he truly is.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eRajiv Surendra captures the uncertainty, heartache, and joy of finding ones place in the world with sly humor and refreshing honesty. \u003ci\u003eThe Elephants in My Backyard \u003c\/i\u003eis not a journey of goals and victories, but a story of process and determination. It is a spellbinding and profound book for anyone who has ever failed at something and had to find a new path through life.","brand":"Jae Hall","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47179744968944,"sku":"9781682450512","price":10.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781682450512_p0.jpg?v=1763697214","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781682450512","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}