Tag: LGBTQ characters

Shehan Karunatilaka’s—The seven moons of Maali Almeida *****

Shehan Karunatilaka’s—The seven moons of Maali Almeida *****

Reviews from the Guardian and the Times referred to this novel as “often funny” and crediting the story with “tremendous imagination.” I couldn’t disagree more. It appeared as if these reviewers knew nothing about Sri Lankan history because there was nothing funny about thousands of bodies hacked to pieces so they couldn’t be identified and dumped into a Colombo lake. Nor anything imaginative about these facts because that’s what they were—historical facts. What was clever about Karunatalaka’s writing was that Almeida, his main character is killed, and oversees these crimes as a ghost thereby telling the tale from an omnipotent viewpoint.

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Robert Jones Jr’s — The prophets *****

Robert Jones Jr’s — The prophets *****

Isaiah and Samuel only know the names they’ve been given by their master, Paul, who owns a southern cotton plantation. They know nothing of their past. They are assigned to the barn to tend the animals where Paul plans to use them as breeding stock to enrich his plantation with more slaves. But once the pair mature, their love for each other deepens. When Amos learns of their conduct behind closed doors, he preaches to the rest of the slaves that they are evil. Many turn their backs of Isaiah and Samuel and they become more isolated. But their love for each other sustains them until Timothy, Paul’s only son, returns from the north after completing his education. One night, when he spies the pair entwined in each other arms, their lives change, and will never be the same again.

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