A review by sahanac
The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

 Magical realism, Sri Lankan civil war, afterlives and futures - this book has it all. And it evokes such feeling too, that it was a shock to the system, but still unputdownable. I'll admit that I grabbed it for the cover, but I stayed for Maali and his sick sense of humor. It's not a spoiler to say the main character is dead when we begin the book. A photojournalist who is looking to uncover the cruelties and intricacies of the Sri Lankan civil war, his spirit is now on it's way to uncover who killed him and hid his body, all while he tries to resist being taken by the light. Good and evil and queerness in during war in the '80s - it's not easy. But it's so fully explored, so developed, and the politics is explained in a detail that I, as a complete novice about Sri Lankan politics, appreciated, explanatory but not heavy handed. No surprise that this won the Booker, but I am surprised that it's not on more book lists. If you're looking for a non-Western author, or a book about a place we don't often see in the published world - Maali has something to say to you.