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Travel Literature
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Considering what a colourful and culturally rich destination Sri Lanka is, it’s surprising that more writers haven’t left a trail of ink chronicling their experiences here.
Running in the Family, by Michael Ondaatje, recounts a return to Sri Lanka in the 1970s after growing up here in the ’40s and ’50s, and captures many of the little oddities that make up life in Sri Lanka.
RL Brohier records his travels around Sri Lanka as a British surveyor in the first half of the 20th century in Seeing Ceylon and Discovering Ceylon. Both books capture lots of intriguing historical titbits that are hard to find elsewhere (even if they’re not 100% accurate, on occasion).
A Village in the Jungle, by Leonard Woolf, is a rather depressing account of local life in Hambantota. First published in 1913, it is in the same vein as George Orwell’s Burmese Days.
An engaging, insightful story, July, by Karen Roberts, tells of two neighbours – one Sinhalese, one Tamil – growing up together.
Elmo Jayawardena picked up literary prizes with Sam’s Story, the tale of an illiterate village boy working in Colombo. It’s a simple, often light-hearted read that deftly deals with the wider problems of society.
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