UPON A SLEEPLESS ISLE BY ANDREW FIDEL FERNANDO

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BOOK NAME: UPON A SLEEPLESS ISLE

AUTHOR NAME: ANDREW FIDEL FERNANDO

GENRE: NONFICTION (TRAVELOGUE)

PUBLISHER: PANMACMILLAN INDIA (PICADOR INDIA)

BOOK BUY LINK : https://www.amazon.in/Upon-Sleepless-Andrew-Fidel-Fernando-ebook/dp/B07SQQZ1C6



This book made me believe that travelogues are the best form of literature to learn about a place in its entirety. From the start till the end, the book did not seem to bore me at all, given that it's nonfiction and was very rightly chosen as the winner of the 2019 Gratiaen Prize.




Being a Tamilian, I have learned a lot about Sri Lanka through the Tamil media ever since childhood. But reading and witnessing the account through the lens of a Sri Lankan writer was mesmerising. The author has beautifully given an understanding of the Srilankan culture, religious practices, internal conflicts, landscapes, war memorials, cuisines and much more.


The journalist in the writer shows throughout the book in the way it has been narrated with wit, humour and sarcasm. From politics to cricket to war, the book speaks about everything. Not just that, the author also shares his travel experience and about his fellow travellers, which feels very real. The moment I read about his travel fatigue and how he confessed to having felt tired and irritable about everything towards the end of his travel without boasting only about the best aspects of his journey, I realised how factual this book is.


The writer has written about both the outstanding and underwhelming aspects of his country from a neutral standpoint. I loved how he covered the never-ending conflict between the Tamil and Sinhalese, the LTTE and the Srilankan army, the Muslims and Buddhists, and the North vs the South. I never thought that this tiny little island had so much history hidden under its roots. I loved reading about Jaffna's war monuments, the Meera Juma masjid's brave martyrs, the little England - Nuvara Eliya, and the Buddhist and Hindu monuments.


The portraits in the book were very amusing and nostalgic, giving a feeling of reading our daily newspapers with comic sketches of political and sports affairs. As a whole, if you would love to read about Sri Lankan history, then this is the book you must go to. I am now craving to visit the Meera Juma Masjid and the Jaffna library in a trishaw after feasting on rice and sambal. 



MY REVIEW: 5/5

#penbooksandscalpel

I am participating in Blogchatter’s #TBRchallenge


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