Tab Article

Ratings: ★★★★☆ (4.3/5)
Genre: Literary Fiction / Diaspora Fiction / Romance / Sri Lankan English Literature

Book Review:
The Unmarriageable Man by Ashok Ferrey – praised by Alexander McCall Smith as ''a wonderful writer'' – follows Sanjay de Silva, a young Sri Lankan who loses his mother early and lives under a controlling father in Colombo. After his father's cancer diagnosis, Sanjay moves to 1980s London. There he falls in love with Janine, a fellow Sri Lankan old enough to be his mother. At its heart, this is a novel about grief: ''grief is only the transmutation of love.'' Sir David Hare lauds its ''characteristic lightness of tone, which smuggles in huge emotional impact.'' A poignant, beautifully written exploration of family, loss, and identity.