Share for friends:

Swimming In The Monsoon Sea (2007)

Swimming in the Monsoon Sea (2007)

Book Info

Rating
3.76 of 5 Votes: 2
Your rating
ISBN
0887768342 (ISBN13: 9780887768347)
Language
English
Publisher
tundra books

About book Swimming In The Monsoon Sea (2007)

I wrote this for my adolescent lit class according to that class's guidelines.Fiction . 2005 Lambda Literary Award. Nominated for the Governor General's Literary Awards 2005, (Children's Literature, Text)In 1980s Sri Lanka and 14 year old Amrith is not looking forward to the summer monsoon season. He doesn’t have much planned and he isn’t happy. Amrith can’t stop thinking about what was: the home he once lived in, the parents he once had, the fear and love he used to feel. Now he lives with his Aunty Bundle and Uncle Lucky and their children. They have made him one of their own, but he doesn’t feel a true part of the family. Amrith is angry and sad and he’s not sure why-- he’s just sure that he doesn’t want to think about the loss of his mother any more. In the middle of a tedious vacation filled with typing lessons at his Uncle Lucky’s office and being annoyed by his adopted sisters he gets the news that his 16 year old cousin Niresh has come to visit and wants to meet him. But why now? His mother’s family disowned him after she died, which his why he lives with Aunty Bundle, his mother’s best friend. What follows is a summer of jealousy, fear ,awakening , peace, and love perhaps as Amrith discovers who he is and who he loves but most importantly who loves him. Swimming in the Monsoon Sea is a beautiful book. The language is as lush as the climate of Sri Lanka and Selvadurai’s words weave a tapestry for your senses so clearly that you can taste the thambili and feel the coming rain. Amrith’s rage surges as I image the sudden storms of the season do and pull him down or drag him along like the undertow in a violent ocean. Amrith is a privileged boy—his adoptive family is wealthy and can afford to protect him and have him grow up gently. But Amrith has to endure privation of a different kind: the loss of his mother to a violent alcoholic husband and the loss of family. As Amrith comes to know his cousin Niresh he comes to know himself. When he is finally able to admit that he is “different” (265) The clouds covering his life begin to lift and clear, much as Othello’s so when he understands where his jealousy has led him. This is an analogy in the book, since Amrith is performing in the play, that it might take a little work to draw out for the students. Though Amrith rages and becomes gripped by violent feelings several times in the book as he battles his jealousy and sorrow, this is still a gentle book. The awakening to his homosexuality is dealt with so beautifully if it doesn’t bring a tear I would be surprised. It is a lovely story filled with exotic words and atmosphere about a boy’s first love. I would recommend this to grades 11 and up because of the possibly controversial subject matter (though really, there are two mentions of erections and not a word worse than “shit” used in the entire book—it seems very tame and sweet to me) and because the language (and the use of Sinhalese words) is complex. There is also a very subtle use of the sustained metaphor of the monsoon season ocean that, while not out of place in the least, might be difficult for younger readers to understand. This would be best used as an individual choice reading book in my opinion, though the day we can read something like this aloud in class and have it be a non issue is a day that won’t come soon enough for me.

I read this book for the same reason that Shyam Selvadurai seems to have written it. To find a bridge between worlds one is interested in, and relates to. Selvadurai, who now is a citizen of Canada, and has been residing in Toronto for years, is a Sri Lankan by birth. He was among the thousands of refugees who fled their home country during the Tamil-Sinhalese riots in the 80s. The author’s first book, ‘Funny Boy’ was an exceptional one in many ways. Sparkling with simplicity, the novel instantly placed Selvadurai as an exceptionally new talent in South Asian literature. The fact that he is now long settled in Canada has enabled his wonderful work to be appreciated by the western world as well. Back home in Sri Lanka, he remains a much admired writer, and a recipient of many awards. When a writer is part of two worlds – Sri Lanka and Canada – with a readership in both countries, his instinct is often to combine these worlds so as to help his readers relate better. That seems to be one of the ideas behind his third novel, ‘Swimming In The Monsoon Sea’ - a forgettable title that I’m literally never able to remember without looking at the cover again. The book’s 14 year old protagonist, Amrith comes face to face with his Canadian cousin, Niresh after years of not knowing him. This introduction of a foreigner into an affluent Sri Lankan family of affable parents and plucky teenagers turns the story into a cultural exchange of sorts. Young Amrith who is at the threshold of puberty has much to be happy about, but many things to mull over as well. His parents are no more, and he has no blood relatives to call his own. However, he has a solid support system and protective guardians in the form of Aunt Bundle and Uncle Lucky. The couple has two girls, Maya and Selvi, who treat Amrith as one of their own, even if they are bickering for most part. As children experience so often when they step into young adulthood, a strange sense of loneliness takes over, a self-consciousness creeps in, and new emotions find home in the heart. The only interesting part of Amrith’s life at this time is a play he’s taking part in. Being a boys’ school, the female part is also essayed by boys. Instinctively, Amrith is drawn to the female roles. In this case, he sets his mind of playing Desdemona from Othello. The Shakespearean drama about intense jealousy and unfairness serves as a backdrop to Amrith’s story, as he is faced with unspeakable truths about himself. His cousin coming into his life throws him literally into a deluge of discovery about his sexual orientation. Till now, Amrith only has a small idea about what such a thing means. He knows ‘such people’ are made fun of, and he dreads what its consequences could be.http://sandyi.blogspot.in/2015/02/swi...

Do You like book Swimming In The Monsoon Sea (2007)?

Summary:It's just another boring summer vacation for fourteen-year-old Sri Lankan boy Amrith. With little to look forward to and no friends his age, Amrith dreads the impending weeks. He spends his mornings learning typing with his kindly Uncle Lucky and his afternoons practicing for a role in his school's adaptation of Othello. Amrith is content with these activities, but feels despondent and lonely. All of that changes with the unexpected arrival of his Canadian cousin Niresh.My Thoughts:Selvadurai is such an eloquent writer with a strong talent for describing the human experience. Amrith is a character who will tug at your heart strings. The tragic secrets in his past will keep you wanting to read more page after page.
—Daniela

This is a much quieter YA read than most, which is in some ways refreshing, but in other ways makes it come across as very slow and occasionally meandering. The idea of a place being a character in the story (in this case Sri Lanka) doesn't appear in a lot of YA, and I wonder if teens would have an appreciation of that, being much more accustomed to books driven by plot rather than setting and relationships. Hell, I found my mind drifting occasionally. It was an interesting parallel to Othello (
—Elizabeth

3.5 -- I quite enjoyed this book. This is the first time I've read something by this author, as it's a novel I'll be teaching in the next week. If there is one thing I adore about this book, it's certainly how relationships are handled. Amrith is a fourteen year old boy who's being taken car of by his adoptive family. He also falls in love with Niresh, and is essentially coping with the fact that he is a homosexual teen still coming to terms with his sexuality and how he feels that others will view him. Amrith's self-exploration is wonderfully done and watching his feelings for Niresh blossom is very much a fun part to this story.I really enjoyed how visual this novel is. Selvadurai makes it so easy to picture the Sri Lanka and its many sights and sounds. Even his visuals of Canada through Niresh's perspective are beautifully written. The imagery in this novel paints a great picture of how we view Amirth's world. Th only thing I wasn't sold on through the story was how the author tries to parallel this novel with Othello, which at times just didn't feel like this they were fluidly woven in. Otherwise, there's a great story here and I definitely enjoyed this book from cover to cover.
—Sam

download or read online

Read Online

Write Review

(Review will shown on site after approval)

Other books by author Shyam Selvadurai

Other books in category Science Fiction