London, November 01 Life of Pi author Yann Martel's next novel 'Beatrice And Virgil' will be about Holocaust, in which readers will once again find him focussing on animals.

The story revolves around Henry who undertakes an epic journey with a donkey and a howler monkey, named Beatrice and Virgil respectively.

The Canadian writer has picked up the names of Virgil and Beatrice from Dante's 'The Divine Comedy'.

The BBC News reports, the publishers have said the text will raise "profound and philosophical questions about the nature of love and evil."anongate Managing Director Jamie Byng said: "I was stunned by Beatrice and Virgil and all of us at Canongate are enormously excited about taking this book to as many readers as we can."

Byng insisted Martel's new work would live up to readers' expectations after having written the Booker Prize-winning novel eight years ago.

He said: "Life of Pi was always going to be an extremely tricky book to follow up not least because of the expectations of Yann's many fans.

"Thankfully Yann has risen to the challenge by writing another exceptional novel, a wildly imaginative and multi-layered story hat engrosses from the first page and leaves you asking questions long after you have turned the last." (ANI)