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V. V. Ganeshanathan

Author of Love Marriage

3+ Works 330 Members 69 Reviews

About the Author

V. V. Ganeshananthan served for a year as the Writer in Residence at Phillips Exeter Academy.
Image credit: Preston Merchant

Works by V. V. Ganeshanathan

Love Marriage (2008) 236 copies
Brotherless Night (2023) 93 copies

Associated Works

The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2014 (2014) — Contributor — 145 copies
Granta 109: Work (2009) — Contributor — 116 copies
Flashed: Sudden Stories in Comics and Prose (2016) — Contributor — 7 copies

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4.5⭐rounded up!

“Imagine the places you grew up, the places you studied, places that belonged to your people, burned. But I should stop pretending that I know you. Perhaps you do not have to imagine. Perhaps your library, too, went up in smoke.”

In 1981 Jaffna, sixteen-year-old Sashikala “Sashi” Kulenthiren dreams of becoming a doctor just like her eldest brother Niranjan and her late grandfather who was a renowned physician in Colombo. But as the civil war in Sri Lanka intensifies and violence ensues between the warring factions- the Sinhalese government and the Tamil militants who are fighting for an independent state free of persecution of the Tamils, life as she has known it shall be changed forever. When one of her brothers loses his life in an act of anti-Tamil violence and two of her brothers and a family friend join the “movement” Sashi finds herself making choices and being drawn into a life she had never imagined for herself- a medical student also working as a medic for those serving in the movement. As she bears witness to the politics, the violence, and the activism of the 1980s she eventually embarks on exposing the true plight of civilians caught in the crossfire between the warring factions of the Sinhalese government, Tamil militants and the Indian peacekeeping forces through the written word with the help of one of her professors taking risks that could endanger her life and those of her associates.

“I want you to understand: it does not matter if you cannot imagine the future. Still, relentless, it comes.”

Brotherless Night by V.V. Ganeshananthan is a compelling read. Set in the early stages of Sri Lanka’s three-decade civil war, the author takes us through the turbulence of 1980s Jaffna/Colombo including Black July and its aftermath, combining historical fact with fiction. The author writes with passion yet does not fill the pages with any excess – be it words or sentimentality. Narrated in the first person by our protagonist, Sashi, the tone is direct, often matter-of-fact yet there is much depth to the words, the characters and their stories. At times this book reads as a true account rather than a work of fiction. This is one of those rare books that is difficult to read yet impossible to put down.

Many thanks to the author, Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for the digital ARC of this exceptionally well-written novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

“It did not occur to me to count or prove, to measure our losses for history or for other people to understand or believe. I did not collect the evidence of my own destroyed life; I did not know people would ask me for it.”
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srms.reads | 4 other reviews | Sep 4, 2023 |
One family's story over a couple of decades of Tamil Tiger unrest in Sri Lanka. Captures the multiple layers & realities of relationships stressed by civil war.
 
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kcshankd | 4 other reviews | Jun 15, 2023 |
Breathtakingly beautiful, yet painful to read, I was totally absorbed into this novel from the start to its end. I have rarely read such a shocking yet touching story. I won't easily forget this one! I recommend this novel to any reader wanting to learn more about the struggles of humans in worlds we in the United States can only imagine.
 
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c.archer | 4 other reviews | Jan 17, 2023 |
Brotherless Night tells the story of Sashi, a medical student, and her family, including four brothers, who are caught up in the unrest, violence, and ultimately, war in Sri Lanka in the 1980s. They are Tamil in a majority Sinhalese country. Sashi adores her brothers, three of whom become involved with the organization working for Tamil independence.

This book was a bit out of my typical comfort zone, but it is good to mix it up once in a while. A fictional account that reads like a memoir, It is a tough story because so much of what occurs is not fiction. It really happened and continues to happen all over the world as in so many cases the revolutionaries fighting for independence turn out to be as dangerous as the oppressors as does the outside forces that intervene.

This account of man’s injustices to his fellow man is beautifully written and engrossing. The author writes of unimaginable atrocities with sensitivity and pathos. Despite the wrenching honesty of the novel, the strength of those who survive is powerful and somehow uplifting.

It is an important book and should be read.
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vkmarco | 4 other reviews | Dec 19, 2022 |

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