Book In

Booker Prize Winners: The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida - Shehan Karunatilaka

Rupert Fordham and Charlie Fordham Episode 16

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida won the Booker Prize in 2022, the first and only time it has been won by a Sri Lankan author. Set in the late 1980s, in the chaos and brutality of the Sri Lankan civil war, it tells the story of Maali Almeida, who announces himself thus: "If you had a business card, this is what it would say: Maali Almeida - photographer, gambler, slut."  Maali has died, and on the first page says that he now knows the answer to the question "Is there life after death?" The novel follows his story as he attempts to find out how he died and why, and whether his life had any meaning. Hilarious, moving, fascinating, fantastically energetic and teeming with extraordinary characters both alive and dead, Sri Lanka is portrayed in all its tragedy and glory. Join Charlie and Rupert as they discuss Shehan Karunatilaka's brilliant novel.