The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida
Colombo, 1990. Maali Almeida—war photographer, gambler, and closet queen—has woken up dead in what seems like a celestial visa office. His dismembered body is sinking in the serene Beira Lake and he has no idea who killed him. In a country where scores are settled by death squads, suicide bombers, and hired goons, the list of suspects is depressingly long, as the ghouls and ghosts with grudges who cluster round can attest. But even in the afterlife, time is running out for Maali. He has seven moons to contact the man and woman he loves most and lead them to the photos that will rock Sri Lanka.
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Community Reviews
I think that this book didn't do a good job of meshing its two halves, and I think the portrayal of the gay main character was reductive. This book could have done with being a good 15-20% shorter, and with a good 100% less use of the phrase "beautiful boy."
The premise and story itself are undoubtedly interesting, and unlike anything I’ve read before. The writing is generally good, barring a few out of place cliché phrases. Still, I can’t say I enjoyed the read. Around half way through, I realized that the author has not said one positive thing about Sri Lanka— not even a simple description of the natural beauty of the country. For there to be corruption, there must be something good to corrupt. For there to be destruction, there must be something good to destroy. But where is any mention of that? The beautiful landscapes? The animals? The simple virtues of everyday people? A story that highlights the atrocities and injustices of a place is incomplete without the contrast of the good that is being corrupted. To a naive reader, this book would have them believe that there is nothing positive or beautiful about Sri Lanka. Just some more propaganda painting South Asia as one giant slum.
Beyond that, the emphasis on all sides being evil erases the power dynamics and context that lead to violent revolution. While the idea that political violence, regardless of the perpetrator, creates misery and suffering is not wrong, it really isn’t saying much. And what it is saying certainly doesn’t take 400 pages to express.
Overall, I see this book as a self-indulgent cop-out that goes to show that white people love giving prizes to POC who willingly participate in their own marginalization.
This was the most challenging book to read for a myriad of reasons- set in a place and time period of unfamiliarity (to me) and in second person- the author’s style was just not to my liking. I only finished it due to determination.
DNF @ 50%
This was just so tedious to read. It wasn't even the complex politics nor the sad and horrible things that happen in this book, it was just too slow. The second person POV gets tiresome very quickly and caused a disconnect with the main character. Not only was this too long, but it also had way too many characters and wasn't skilled at juggling them all. Very interesting concept and plot, but the execution did not work for me.
This was just so tedious to read. It wasn't even the complex politics nor the sad and horrible things that happen in this book, it was just too slow. The second person POV gets tiresome very quickly and caused a disconnect with the main character. Not only was this too long, but it also had way too many characters and wasn't skilled at juggling them all. Very interesting concept and plot, but the execution did not work for me.
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