Colombo: A NovelColombo is in the throes of an explosion. Its face changes continuously, its vices are legion, its future as yet obscure and its paths speak of sunlight as well as of shadow.-' Carl Muller begins his quasi-fictional portrait of this beautiful, war-torn city by describing the great battles fought over it by European colonizers-. In AD 1505, a Portuguese fleet blown off-course took shelter in Galle, overthrew the local kings, fortified Colombo and decided to stay. The Dutch came along, ousted the Portuguese, made Colombo their capital and ruled till the British arrived and sent them packing. Muller intersperses the tales of the past into descriptions of the battles that are being fought in Colombo today"political battles in which vested interests play a major role as well as battles fought on the individual level in the struggle to survive: young women and children turning to prostitution to earn an extra buck, people begging in the streets to make ends meet, unemployed young men turning to crime in frustration, students demonstrating against atrocities, lovers pining for nightfall in order to push away loneliness if only for a few moments... Written in Muller's lucid style, Colombo: A Novel is a chronicle of a city's trials and triumphs. |
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Page 140
... dragged him down and kicked him and Nelum had crept under the kitchen table to watch how they smashed their boots into his face , his ribs , his chest . Then they had dragged him outside and there were women screaming and men gabbling ...
... dragged him down and kicked him and Nelum had crept under the kitchen table to watch how they smashed their boots into his face , his ribs , his chest . Then they had dragged him outside and there were women screaming and men gabbling ...
Page 183
... dragged out , stabbed to death . In Maradana , a mob assaulted two policemen and snatched their rifles , and in Mattakuliya and Kotahena , many petrol pumps were set ablaze . There were reports of firing from rooftops and several ...
... dragged out , stabbed to death . In Maradana , a mob assaulted two policemen and snatched their rifles , and in Mattakuliya and Kotahena , many petrol pumps were set ablaze . There were reports of firing from rooftops and several ...
Page 372
... dragged the family to the canal . They even tied the mother to a stout bamboo , then dragged her along . Her screams grew fainter . At the water's edge the big fish knife flashed . Four decapitated bodies were heaved into the canal ...
... dragged the family to the canal . They even tied the mother to a stout bamboo , then dragged her along . Her screams grew fainter . At the water's edge the big fish knife flashed . Four decapitated bodies were heaved into the canal ...
Contents
Under the Umbrella | 3 |
The Leafy Mango Tree | 14 |
Shabby People | 23 |
Copyright | |
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Angelbeck arms asked bastion blood boat British Buddha Buddhist building called canal Captain carried Ceylon child Church cinnamon coconut Colombo Company dark door dragged Dutch East elephants eyes father fire fish Galle Face Galle Face Green Galle Face Hotel garden Gate girls give Governor Grand Pass guns hands harbour head Hotel Hulft hundred India Jaya Kandy Kelani kill king knew Kochchikade Kollupitiya Kotte lake land Legrevisse light live London looked LTTE Malays Maradana military Minister mother moved Mutwal night officers Pettah police political port Portuguese Raja Sinha ramparts road Royal Asiatic Society rupees scream ships Sinhala Sinhalese Slave Island Sri Lanka stands station stood Street Tamil tell thousand told trade tree Trincomalee turned Vesak vessels W.H. Auden wait walk walls watch Wellawatte wife woman