Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme that was started by @Lauren’s Page Turners but is now currently being hosted by Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog. This meme is quite easy to follow – just randomly pick a book from your to-be-read list and give the reasons why you want to read it. It is that simple.

This week’s book:

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka

Blurb from Goodreads

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.

Ten years after his prize-winning novel Chinaman established him as one of Sri Lanka’s foremost authors, Shehan Karunatilaka is back with a “thrilling satire” (Economist) and rip-roaring state-of-the-nation epic that offers equal parts mordant wit and disturbing, profound truths.

Why I Want To Read It

It is the start of a new work week! I hope that your Monday is happy and not manic. Woah, I can’t believe that we are already in the third week of October. We are just 10 weeks away from welcoming 2023. Where did the time go? As 2022 slowly approaches its twilight days, I hope that you all get repaid for all the hard work you’ve poured in. I hope that all your prayers get answered. With the start of a new week, I hope you started it on the right note. I hope that the rest of the week will go great for everyone. More importantly, I hope that you are all doing well and are in a good state of health, both in your mind and body. My biggest wish, however, is for COVID-19 and monkeypox to be finally eradicated. With this, I remind everyone to be diligent in observing minimum health protocols. I wish that everyone will have a great week ahead!

To kickstart the blogging week, I am posting a new Goodreads Monday update. Seeing that I still have several works of American literature on my active reading challenges, I have decided to make my October reading journey an extension of my September reading journey. My focus lately has been on my active reading challenges. Toward the end of August, I realized that I have been left behind in most of my reading challenges. In order to avoid last-minute cramming which usually happens toward the end of the year, I have been picking up books from these challenges. This shift in focus has helped in ticking off books from these challenges. However, the book I am featuring in this week’s update is a deviation from this month’s motif. for this week’s Goodreads Monday update, I am featuring Shehan Karunatilaka’s The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida.

The reason for the deviation from this month’s theme is because of the looming announcement of the winner of the 2022 Booker Prize in Fiction, one of the most prestigious literary prizes out there. One of the books vying for the award is The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka. Like last year, the shortlist featured a Sri Lankan writer; last year, it was Anuk Arudpragasam and his novel A Passage North, a book I liked because of its lyrical albeit tedious paragraphs. Anyway, had it not been for the announcement of the longlist, I would have not encountered Shehan Karunatilaka. His book, with its interesting title, was one of the books from the longlist to immediately pique my interest. There was something unique about it.

I also learned that Karunatilaka first rose to prominence in 2012 with his novel, Chinaman. The book earned him several accolades, such as the 2012 Commonwealth book prize. The book is also regarded as one of the best Sri Lankan novels of all time. Speaking of Sri Lankan writers, my foray into their works admittedly is quite limited. I’m glad that the Booker Prize is and has introduced me to some of the most heralded Sri Lankan writers in the contemporary. For now, however, my goal is to obtain a copy of the book. How about you fellow reader? What books have you added to your reading list? Do drop it in the comment box. For now, happy Monday and, as always, happy reading!

Advertisement