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. |
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Page 46
... Revathy would listen and smile uncertainly and not venture opinions . She was both amazed and amused at these Burghers who thought nothing about privacy . Beryl would regale her on how Sonnaboy performed on ' those days ' . ' What , men ...
... Revathy would listen and smile uncertainly and not venture opinions . She was both amazed and amused at these Burghers who thought nothing about privacy . Beryl would regale her on how Sonnaboy performed on ' those days ' . ' What , men ...
Page 48
... Revathy . ' Nice fair fellow , no ? And see the dimple in the cheek . My son also had just like that . ' ' Hah ! ' said John . Days passed and Revathy discovered that married life could be very trying . She couldn't understand her ...
... Revathy . ' Nice fair fellow , no ? And see the dimple in the cheek . My son also had just like that . ' ' Hah ! ' said John . Days passed and Revathy discovered that married life could be very trying . She couldn't understand her ...
Page 54
... Revathy , in her bed , pricked up her ears . There was a strange noise on the roof . It never occurred to her to switch on the light . The small kerosene lamp which she lit at night cast its pool of light on the floor . The roof was in ...
... Revathy , in her bed , pricked up her ears . There was a strange noise on the roof . It never occurred to her to switch on the light . The small kerosene lamp which she lit at night cast its pool of light on the floor . The roof was in ...
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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