A very fine haunting story of Triton the houseboy becoming a man in his own right. ( )

å beautiful book ( )

A boy grows up as a servant in Sri Lanka. Touching and fierce. ( )

Reef focuses on three main characters: the wealthy and intellectual socialite Mr. Salgado, his thoroughly modern girlfriend Nili and Triton, Mr. Salgado's teenage manservant who is also the book's narrator. The book was described as a coming of age tale set in Sri Lanka on the eve of civil war, which sounded perfect for my literary tastes. Unfortunately, the poor characterization and plot development made this book a difficult read. The milquetoast narrator barely changes except to get older and the other characters are equally bland. I think the novel wants to comment on the forces that create a civil war, but that's hard to do when the narrator is an uneducated, housebound servant with little knowledge of the outside world. The whispers of war that penetrate the walls of the mansion are too faint to make an impression on the reader. The book's final two chapters finally achieve some resonance, but 10 pages of strong writing is not enough to redeem a 200-page book. Beyond Gunesekera's flair for descriptive writing, this book has little to recommend it. ( )

It's a book of "memory and imagination ... how you work out who you are and why you're there ..." (Romesh's words) and the characters have taken up residence in my head.

The story is a long flashback, narrated by a Sri Lankan restauranteur living in London after a late night encounter with a compatriot at a petrol station. Triton recalls his life as a houseboy in the employ of Mr. Salgado, an aristocratic dilettante, and how he gradually takes over the running of the household. Triton observes and puzzles over Salgado's relationship with the unconventional Nili, and does his best to lubricate the friendship with wonderous offerings of food (the love cake with extra eggs and freshest butter, the beautiful parrot fish, and of course the Christmas turkey).

It's a novel of great charm and beauty. ( )