The characters who populate this novel are deeply flawed, interesting, believable characters who stayed in our imagination long after finishing the final page. As the story progresses, readers view the unfolding events through the perspectives of the five main characters – mother, father, daughter, son, servant – crafting a layered, panoramic view. It’s hard enough to craft one original voice in fiction, but for Ruins Savanadasa has crafted no less than five distinct, compelling voices. Ruins is a rare thing in fiction – a successful polyphonic novel that contains multiple voices. Set in busy, bustling Colombo during the aftermath of the Sri Lankan civil war, the novel explores the class, racial and generational divides of a big, messy family. So it was exciting to get our hands on Ruins. Many of us here at Readings are big fans of novels about dysfunctional families (who isn’t?) and it’s an area of literature that’s often dominated by American fiction. Ruins is a refreshing take on the ‘big, messy, dysfunctional family’ narrative. Here’s why we think you should read this book.ġ. We’re delighted that Rajith Savanadasa’s debut novel is one of the six books shortlisted for this year’s Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction.
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