Brotherless Night is the story of Sashi and her four brothers, whose lives are torn apart by the Sri Lankan civil war, which lasted from 1983 to 2009 and ended with the defeat of the Tamil Tigers by the Sri Lankan government. Sashi loses her elder brother during the anti-Tamil pogroms in Colombo, while two of her other brothers join the Tigers. One is killed fighting for their cause, while the other is lost because of his political beliefs. Sashi also supports K, a friend who dies during a hunger strike protesting India’s failure to meet the Tigers’ demands. Throughout the conflict, Sashi becomes a doctor and treats the wounded from all sides, trying to preserve her humanity in the middle of the violence. Eventually, she is forced to flee the country. This book was truly eye-opening. I had never realised the scale of the Sri Lankan civil war or how many civilians were trapped between the different forces. The writing is remarkable, blending real historical events with the fictional journey of this young woman. A beautifully sad story and a powerful account of a tragic chapter in history.
“Evil is not limited by what you personally can imagine.”
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