Yakada Yakā: The Continuing Saga of Sonnaby Von Bloss and the Burgher RailwaymenYakada Yaka is the second part of the Burgher trilogy that began with The Jam Fruit Tree When the conquering British roll out the first railway steam-driven locomotive in Sri Lanka, it causes quite a stir. The smoke-spewing, banshee-wailing, fearsome black thing hisses like a thousand cobras... and the villagers declare that this Thing is an Iron Demon-a yakada yaka. The Burghers who drive these Iron Demons have a penchant for challenging authority and courting trouble, sometimes just to liven things up in the railway outposts... and so it is that Sonnaboy and Meerwald chase a large group of villagers all across Anuradhapura, mother-naked but not much bothered by it, Ben Godlieb conjures up a corpse in his cowcatcher, Dickie Byrd single-handedly demolishes a Pentecostal Mission and is hailed as the messiah of the Railway fraternity, and Basil Van der Smaght filches a human heart and feeds it to the Nawalapitiya railway staff ...and to cap it all, Sonnaboy takes French Leave to act in The Bridge on the River Kwai! '(Muller) tells his tale with a gentle humour often bordering on tenderness, but couched in the vigorous rugged localese. Almost immediately we find ourselves empathizing with Muller's roistering band that sins and prays with equal zest.' -Business Standard '... The Burghers ...believed in living life to the hilt. Every situation occasioned wild revels, and there was nothing that could not be solved through a brawl.' -India Today. |
From inside the book
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Page 13
... Elsie who lived in Nimal Road in Bambalapitiya . Elsie made pleased kroo - kroo noises . ' My , child , just look at you , will you . Children are dressing . All coming for your birthday , no ? Come , come , sit and drink some tea ...
... Elsie who lived in Nimal Road in Bambalapitiya . Elsie made pleased kroo - kroo noises . ' My , child , just look at you , will you . Children are dressing . All coming for your birthday , no ? Come , come , sit and drink some tea ...
Page 18
... Elsie came hotfoot to see what all the row Ian had come home to make was about . Singho , seated on a sleeper was telling Jesudason , ' These are mine . ' Jesudason was unimpressed . ' I saw the pooshing . Tried to murder , I think ...
... Elsie came hotfoot to see what all the row Ian had come home to make was about . Singho , seated on a sleeper was telling Jesudason , ' These are mine . ' Jesudason was unimpressed . ' I saw the pooshing . Tried to murder , I think ...
Page 135
... Elsie's . ' How ? How ? ' ' What to how ! With all this War and all , can't get a damn thing now in the markets . ' A long pause . Elsie asks : ' So , what brought you this way ? ' ' Noooo , nothing much . Just dropped in . ' ' Ah ...
... Elsie's . ' How ? How ? ' ' What to how ! With all this War and all , can't get a damn thing now in the markets . ' A long pause . Elsie asks : ' So , what brought you this way ? ' ' Noooo , nothing much . Just dropped in . ' ' Ah ...
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Common terms and phrases
accepted Anuradhapura arrack asked baby began Beryl better bloody Bloss Board boys brake bridge bring British brother brought bugger bungalow Burgher called Carloboy Ceylon Colombo coming decided door drink driver elephant engine everything eyes face fellow fireman Gampola garden gave girls give guard hands happened head heart hell husband John keep Kinno Kirby knew later light lived look Meerwald mind morning mother moved needed never night Peebles Railway raised road scream seemed shouting side signal Sinhalese sleepers Sonnaboy Sonnaboy's sort station stationmaster stop sure talk Tamil tell thing thought told took track train tree turn wait waves whistle whole wife woman