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booksweread's reviews
407 reviews
Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies by Alison Goodman
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
3.0
Honeybees and Distant Thunder by Riku Onda
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
Song of the Sun God by Shankari Chandran
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
All the stars 🙌🏾
Wow. This book. So deeply moving and affecting. I cannot believe it was originally passed over by Australian publishers because it was not 'Australian’ enough.
Wow. This book. So deeply moving and affecting. I cannot believe it was originally passed over by Australian publishers because it was not 'Australian’ enough.
With a backdrop of the rising unrest and violence in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) after the end of the British occupation, Nala and Rajan start their life as a married couple.
This is their story, and the story of their daughters, Priya, who eventually finds her way to Australia, and Dharra who stays behind to support the Tamil fighters.
The story moves along quickly and sometimes jumps ahead a few years at a time, but it doesn't lose momentum or impact.
I loved the beautiful writing, the warm characters who l held in my heart (Dharra ) and I didn't get overwhelmed with the politics.
I loved the way Shankari used the Mahabharata to guide the political and character storylines, giving the story a beautiful depth.
A brilliant book. An emotional read, I was in tears almost throughout the whole book. A standout for the year. An all time favourite. I really hope more people will pick this one up.
With eternal thanks to @ultimopress for a gifted copy of this book.