I'm a sucker for a story involving a fabulous but sinister grandmother and “The Hungry Ghosts” has one who is absolutely fascinating to read about. Set in Sri Lanka during a time of civil war, the protagonist Shivan describes his early life when he and his impoverished mother and sister were forced to move in with his grandmother Daya Nona. This is an intimidating older woman who is kind of a cross between Ebenezer Scrooge and Miss Havisham. The story plays out a bit like a Dickensian tale as Shivan becomes the favoured grandson of this irascible and tightfisted lady who begins instructing him on how to manage her many rental properties. He appears to have good future prospects but as he becomes a teenager the political unrest in the country reaches a degree where it becomes unsafe for Shivan and his sister to remain living there. Though their mother is Sinhalese their deceased father was Tamil, an ethnic minority who were severely persecuted amidst the conflict. Added to this is Shivan growing awareness of his own homosexuality. Despite Daya Nona's objections, the trio move to Toronto where they experience difficulty establishing new lives as immigrants. The narrative relates the story of Shivan's life from a point where he's independently established a good job, apartment and relationship but he must make a crucial decision between his hard-won present day existence and the country he's left behind with all its painful memories.

I was glad to already have some understanding of the recent conflicts in Sri Lanka after reading novels such as “The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida” and “A Passage North” which encouraged me to research more about the deep-set political divisions in the country which led to much bloodshed. The complex and tragic situation has been fought for decades with periods of egregious discord and genocide. Though it mostly occurs in the background of Selvadurai's novel it influences and effects the lives of its characters to such a degree it's necessary to be aware of the stakes involved. The novel explains this somewhat and helped broaden my understanding even further. It's extremely effective how the larger conflicts within the country suddenly become very personal at a certain point in the story and how some individuals used the larger political strife for their own personal gain and advancement. This increases the characters' complexity as they find themselves caught between opportunity, loyalty and justice.

At the centre of this tale is Shivan's conflicted sense of being as he obtains certain freedom and safety in Canada, but longs for his homeland. At one point he remarks: “Rising in me was a great longing to be back in Sri Lanka and also, paradoxically, a revulsion against being there. These two irreconcilable feelings pressed tight against each other.” These feelings are very connected with his grandmother who is both his supporter and partly responsible for inhibiting his freedom. It's impressive how their relationship develops more and more layers as revelations are uncovered and events dramatically unfold. Equally, it's poignant how the novel shows that parts of the gay community in Canada which Shivan desperately wants to join is plagued by racism which makes him feel even more cruelly ostracised. Though it's moving how the story roots the reader so strongly in Shivan's first person point of view, the narrative wobbles somewhat as we switch in some sections to the mother and grandmother's perspectives. I'm not sure if we're meant to believe these are their actual thoughts/experiences or Shivan's projection of their points of view. While I understand the author wanted to give a balance to the story and delineate these figures' states of mind it confuses the novel somewhat.

Another aspect of the novel running alongside Shivan's personal account are Buddhist stories which his grandmother relates to him. These act as parables which comment upon the characters' actions and decisions. I enjoyed how this sense of storytelling becomes so infused with his sense of being. Of course, I felt very sympathetic to Shivan since he is naturally bookish and it's pleasurable how he drops in the names of many titles and authors he reads. Alongside the strength of his character, the evolving dynamics of his relationship to his mother and grandmother are very compelling. However, the tensions between Shivan and his longterm boyfriend feel more inscrutable. This becomes the most prominent aspect of the later part of the novel and makes the book less satisfying than if it had stuck more closely to Shivan's immediate family. Nevertheless, I greatly enjoyed this tale which evocatively brings to life two very different and distinct environments and a boy caught between them.

Over the New Year period some friends and I went to the Faroe Islands for a short holiday. These are a remote group of islands to the north of Scotland (although it’s an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark.) We wanted to go somewhere unique and remote. Often when I travel to new places I like to find translated literature from that location to read while I'm there. So I was delighted to discover “The Old Man and His Sons” which is a Faroese novel first published in 1940. The author grew up in a small village in the Faroes at a time when there was a generational shift from traditional self-contained living where people primarily sustained themselves to a more outward-looking market economy. The story reflects this transition following a few months in the life of Ketil and his wife, an older couple who live in a simple old dwelling. Their children have all grown and started families of their own except for their youngest son Kalvur who is regarded as simple-minded. The older couple find themselves financially strained when Ketil impulsively purchases a large quantity of whale meat at an auction. As the date they have to pay the bill grows near, they desperately try to find ways to earn extra money and bicker with their children who still sponge off from them.

It was wonderful reading this while actually staying on the islands as it brought the atmospheric descriptions within the story to life. There are frequent references to the strong winds and unpredictable weather which is certainly still true as some nights we felt like the windows were going to break because the wind blows so strong there. Having visited a few villages I can also understand why the characters live such isolated lives as there are many clusters of houses tucked away within the fjords. Ketil’s wife (who is oddly never named) hasn’t left their village in many years and Ketil resists going to the capital of Torshavn because he resents that people there will expect him to use a fork. It was fascinating reading about the details of their lives which involve a lot of hard manual labour and, though there is a strong sense of community, many of the people seem to possess a toughened sense of independence and pride.

This is a beautiful short video my friend Eric McFarland made which captured our trip.

The crux of the story focuses on the generational conflicts and differing values between the older citizens who prefer traditional ways and the newer generation who actively seek out economic and technological advancements. This isn’t a new theme, but it’s well executed and given a special resonance because it feels like very little changed on these islands for many centuries until some modern leaps took place in the mid-20th century. Both Ketil and his wife may be stubborn characters, but they are very endearing and I found many of their scenes quite funny and touching. There’s also a tenderness conveyed in how both generations care and look after their family members which shows how (despite possessing different values) there is an enduring commitment to each other. This was the perfect novel to read while travelling around these isolated and beautiful group of islands.