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Island of a Thousand Mirrors

Island of a Thousand Mirrors

Current price: $29.95
Publication Date: September 2nd, 2014
Publisher:
Blackstone Audiobooks
ISBN:
9781481508155
Pages:
0

This beautifully written novel relates the story of two families on opposite sides of the conflict on the island of Sri Lanka. Readers experience the passions and brutalities of the civil war between the Tamil Tigers and the Sinhalese Sri Lankan military. This conflict began in 1948, when the British left the island formerly named Ceylon, and ended in 2009. The customs, foods, and colors of the island permeate the descriptions of the daily life of the people in this excellent book.

Sally Van Wert, MacDonald Book Shop, Estes Park, CO
September 2014 Indie Next List

Description

A stunning literary debut of two young women on opposing sides of the devastating Sri Lankan Civil WarBefore violence tore apart the tapestry of Sri Lanka and turned its pristine beaches red, there were two families. Yasodhara tells the story of her own Sinhala family, rich in love, with everything they could ask for. As a child in idyllic Colombo, Yasodhara and her siblings' lives are shaped by social hierarchies, their parents' ambitions, teenage love, and, subtly, the differences between Tamil and Sinhala people; but the peace is shattered by the tragedies of war. Yasodhara's family escapes to Los Angeles. But Yasodhara's life has already become intertwined with a young Tamil girl's.Saraswathi is living in the active war zone of Sri Lanka and hopes to become a teacher. But her dreams for the future are abruptly stamped out when she is arrested by a group of Sinhala soldiers and pulled into the very heart of the conflict that she has tried so hard to avoid--a conflict that, eventually, will connect her and Yasodhara in unexpected ways.In the tradition of Michael Ondatje's Anil's Ghost and Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things, Island of a Thousand Mirrors is an emotionally resonant saga of cultural heritage, heartbreaking conflict, and deep family bonds. Narrated in two unforgettably authentic voices and spanning the entirety of the decades-long civil war, it offers an unparalleled portrait of a beautiful land during its most difficult moment by a spellbinding new literary talent who promises tremendous things to come.