Afterlife Noir: Sri Lankan Author Shehan Karunatilaka Wins 2022 Booker Prize for His Novel ‘The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida’
- Considered a metaphysical whodunnit that is part mystery and part comedy, the novel is set against the backdrop of the brutal Sri Lankan civil war.
More than 12 years after the end of one of the most brutal conflicts in modern times ended, Shehan Karunatilaka’s “The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida” set against the backdrop of the very real Sri Lankan civil war won the 2022 Booker Prize for fiction. It is a novel about a photographer who wakes up dead, without an idea who killed him, and then contacts his friends to find his photos and expose the brutality of war.
The judges, who decided unanimously on the award, praised the “ambition of its scope, and the hilarious audacity of its narrative techniques” of the novel, The Guardian reported, Meanwhile, according to the BBC, the head judge Neil MacGregor praised the “scope and the skill, the daring, the audacity and hilarity” of the novel, calling it an “afterlife noir.”
An ebullient BBC arts correspondent Rebecca Jones wrote, “Where to start with this crazy, exuberant metaphysical whodunnit which is part murder mystery, part comedy? Imagine combining brownies, trifle and doughnuts into one single cake and you might get the idea.”
This was Karunatilaka’s second novel, coming after more than a decade when he debuted in 2011 with the widely acclaimed, “Chinaman: The Legend of Pradeep Mathew.”
“My hope is that in the not-too-distant future… Sri Lanka has understood that these ideas of corruption and race-baiting and cronyism have not worked and will never work.”
The newly minted Queen Consort, Camilla, presented the £50,000 prize, at a ceremony in London on Monday where pop singer Dua Lipa was the star guest.
Karunatilaka, according to the BBC, said as he accepted his prize, saying “My hope is that in the not-too-distant future… Sri Lanka has understood that these ideas of corruption and race-baiting and cronyism have not worked and will never work.
“I hope it’s in print in 10 years… if it is, I hope it’s written in a Sri Lanka that learns from its stories and that Seven Moons will be in the fantasy section of the bookshop, next to the dragons, the unicorns and will not be mistaken for realism or political satire.”
Receiving the prize, Karunatilaka (also) addressed the Sri Lankan people in Tamil and Sinhalese, saying “I write these books for you… Let’s keep sharing these stories.”
After Michael Ondaatje, who won in 1992 with “The English Patient,” Karunatilaka became the second Sri Lankan-born author to win the prestigious literary award.