Romesh Gunesekera Knihy

Poetická próza situovaná do exotického prostředí Srí Lanky šedesátých let vypráví příběh chlapce Tritona, který jako jedenáctiletý přichází do domu zámožného přírodovědce Salgada do služby. Příběh Tritonova profesního i obecně lidského růstu, spoluvytvářený temnými kapitolami moderního vývoje ostrova, se tak stává výstižným obrazem osudu citlivého jedince v bouřlivém čase bolestných společenských proměn. Velice příjemná knížka. Velmi lehce se čte a myslím, že osloví široký okruh čtenářů Poetická próza odehrávající se na Srí Lance v šedesátých letech minulého století

Marc, in search of a dream, leaves London and sets out for the island where his grandfather was born and where his father's plane was shot down in flames. It is an island once said to be near the edge of heaven, but now ravaged and despoiled by war. There by a glittering lake he sees the subversive Uva, an eco-warrior releasing emerald doves. Finding her launches him into a world of passion and difficult choices. But their affair is cut short when she disappears. Desperate to find her, Marc embarks on a final terrifying journey that will test all his beliefs as he confronts violence in a quest for love.

The driver’s job is to stay in control behind the wheel and that is all. The past is what you leave as you go. There is nothing more to it. Vasantha retired early, bought himself a van with his savings, and now works as a driver for hire. As he drives through Sri Lanka, carrying aid workers, businessmen, and families and meeting lonely soldiers and eager hoteliers, he engages them with self-deprecating wit and folksy wisdom—and reveals for us their uncertain lives. On his journey from the army camps in northern Jaffna to the moonlit ramparts of Galle, in the south, Vasantha begins to discover the depth of the problems of the past—his own and his country’s—and the promise the future might hold. From the writer praised by The Guardian for the “vivid originality” of his vision, here is a wonderful collection—perceptive, somber, finely tuned—that draws a potent portrait of postwar Sri Lanka and the ghosts of civil war.

In 1964 Ceylon, Kairo finds himself adrift amid societal upheaval. With school closed and the government in turmoil, he retreats into his room, escaping into second-hand Westerns and superhero comics. His mother copes with stress through cha-cha-cha classes, while his Trotskyite father grumbles about the nation’s decline, secretly betting on horse races in England. Everything changes when Kairo meets the charismatic Jay, a budding naturalist and rebel who captivates him. Jay, indifferent to adult authority, is building an aviary in his grand home, trapping birds and keeping fish. His complicated family dynamics include a contemptuous view of his beautiful mother and a wealthy, angry father, yet his suave Uncle Elvin encourages him. As Jay introduces Kairo to a world of hunting guns, fast cars, and a girl named Niromi, Kairo begins to grasp the complexities of privilege and the consequences of their actions. This taut and luminous narrative explores difficult friendships and sudden awakenings, poignantly capturing the loss of innocence and the search for love or solace, intertwining the lives of its characters with our own.

When Prins Ducal arrives in London for his mothers funeral, he is full of questions about the past especially his father's accidental death forty years earlier. Gunesekera's novel "Reef" was shortlisted for the 1994 Booker Prize.

Im Jahr, als Sri Lanka unabhängig wird, kommt der elfjährige Triton als Boy in das Haus von Mister Salgado, einem Meeresbiologen, der nur einen Lebensinhalt hat: das gefährdete Universum des Ozeans. Für den Jungen wird das Haus des Junggesellen zu einem abgeschlossenen Mikrokosmos. Er lernt, das Silber so zu polieren, dass es schimmert wie geschmolzenes Sonnenlicht, den Liebeskuchen mit zehn Eiern zu backen und für die Freundin seines Herrn den Papageienfisch zu dünsten. Und er lernt, mit wachen Augen die politischen, sozialen und amourösen Ränkespiele zu beobachten. Hintergründig erzählt Triton seine Geschichte. Naiv und wissend zugleich, tapfer und ängstlich - die eindrückliche Stimme eines Jungen, der in einer zerbrechenden Welt erwachsen geworden ist.