The first and, arguably, most prominent character we meet in this bitter-sweet tale of intertwined lives is Annalukshmi, grand-niece of the family partriarch, the powerfull Mudaliyar Navaratnam, whose job it is to help British government agents carry out colonial policy, and daughter of Louisa Barnett, the strong-willed matriarch, who is forced to raise her daughters alone, while her husband enjoys a life with his mistress abroad. While the women, in constant fear of their husbands unpredictable mood swings, are trying to find suitable husbands for their daughters, the men of Cinnamon Gardens, with few exceptions English university graduates and high-ranking officials, are trying to preserve their crumbling worlds. Very much like Funny Boy, but in a far less personal, far more objective style, Cinnamon Gardens takes the reader to a very mannered society ruled by etiquette, rituals, and ancient traditions that prescribe the way of doing things: the teas, the dinners, the parties, the daily meetings and weekly excursions with family members, the supervision of servants, chauffeurs, and gardeners. In his latest book, Selvadurai evokes the multi-facetted world of 1920s Ceylon seen from the perspective of the powerful upper classes of Colombos wealthy suburb, Cinnamon Gardens, during a period when the power of colonial rule was shifting.
$29.99Ĭinnamon Gardens is Shyam Selvadurais long-awaited second novel, following his prize-winning bestseller Funny Boy, which, published to acclaim in 1994 and quickly translated into several languages, has mesmerized readers in numerous countries around the world.
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