For the first Book Salon in 2023, we will read the current Booker Prize winner, The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka.

About The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida (publisher's description):

Colombo, 1990. Maali Almeida, war photographer, gambler and closet gay, has woken up dead in what seems like a celestial visa office. His dismembered body is sinking in the serene Beira lake and he has no idea who killed him. At a time where scores are settled by death squads, suicide bombers and hired goons, the list of suspects is depressingly long, as the ghouls and ghosts with grudges who cluster round can attest.

But even in the afterlife, time is running out for Maali. He has seven moons to try and contact the man and woman he loves most and lead them to a hidden cache of photos that will rock Sri Lanka.

Ten years after his prizewinning novel Chinaman established him as one of Sri Lanka's foremost authors, Karunatilaka is back with a rip-roaring epic, full of mordant wit and disturbing truths.

Reviews: The Guardian, The New York Times, Book Marks 

This event is for Asia Society Members only. How to become a member?

Attendance is free. We appreciate if you let us know that you'll be attending in the Book Salon WhatsApp group chat or via mail to [email protected].

About Asia Society Book Salon

In the Asia Society Switzerland Book Salon, we open a direct window into Asian lives. Histories, discourses, and cultures make up the textures of novels. Together we read and discuss fiction from or about Asia in an informal setting to intentionally change our perspectives as a practice in curiosity, openness, and empathy. We meet four times a year – in person in Zurich, if possible. For more information about upcoming meetings and books to read, please join the WhatsApp group or contact us at [email protected].