In this globe-scattered Sri Lankan family, we speak of only two
kinds of marriage. The first is the Arranged Marriage. The second
is the Love Marriage. In reality, there is a whole spectrum in
between, but most of us spend years running away from the first
toward the second. [p. 3]
The daughter of Sri Lankan immigrants who left their collapsing
country and married in America, Yalini finds herself caught between
the traditions of her ancestors and the lure of her own modern
world. But when she is summoned to Toronto to help care for her
dying uncle, Kumaran, a former member of the militant Tamil Tigers,
Yalini is forced to see that violence is not a relic of the Sri
Lankan past, but very much a part of her Western present.
While Kumaran's loved ones gather around him to say goodbye, Yalini
traces her family's roots-and the conflicts facing them as ethnic
Tamils-through a series of marriages. Now, as Kumaran's death and
his daughter's politically motivated nuptials edge closer, Yalini
must decide where she stands.
Lyrical and innovative, V. V. Ganeshananthan's novel brilliantly
unfolds how generations of struggle both form and fractures
families.
Praise for "Love Marriage"
"A beautiful first novel. This intricately woven tale, with its
universal themes of love and estrangement, presents an exciting new
voice in American literature."
-Yiyun Li, author of "A Thousand Years of Good Prayers"
"Complex and moving . . . an impressive debut."
-Daniel Alarcon, author of "Lost City Radio "
"V. V. Ganeshananthan has given us a riveting picture of the
intersections of love and war that shape us all. A debut of
incredible passion and wisdom."
-Rebecca Johns, author of "Icebergs"
"At its best and simplest, Ganeshananthan can be profoundly moving.
She captures the pain of exile poignantly." --"The San Francisco
Chronicle"
"Ganeshananthan has created a slow-burning and beautifully written
debut in Love Marriage. It is an evocative examination of Sri
Lankan cultural mores, and the way one family is affected by love
and war" -- "The Financial Times"
"Poignant and authentic.... Insight gained into Toronto's Tamil
community is a welcome bonus in this gem of a book by a young
writer who is sure to present more thought-provoking, entertaining
prose in the future." --"The Toronto Star"
"The book is at times witty and always beautifully written" -- "The
Irish Times"
"
""Innovative....this is an ambitious family drama about an
underreported part of the world, filled with well-shaded characters
[and] gorgeous flourish...Buy it." -- "New York Magazine"
"As if she were stringing a necklace of bright beads, the author
relates the stories of Yalini's Sri Lankan forebears in lapidary
folkloric narratives...What she does here, she does quite
affectingly." -- "The Boston Globe "
"In spare, lyrical prose, V.V. Ganeshananthan's debut novel tells
the story of two Sri Lankan Tamil families over four generations
who, despite civil war and displacement, are irrevocably joined by
marriage and tradition....Powerful." -- "Ms. Magazine
"
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