The latest book from the Man Book Prize-winning author of The White Tiger, is thoughtful, compassionate and empathetic.
Danny is a Sri Lankan immigrant living in Sydney. He’s overstayed his student visa, so is now living illegally in Australia – living out of a grocery storeroom and cleaning houses. He’s managed to forge a life for himself in the few years he’s been living illegally though – he has a girlfriend, blond highlights in his hair, and he’s managed to tame his accent. He’s beginning to feel like he belongs.
But everything changes one morning when one of his clients, Radha is murdered, and a familiar jacket was left at the scene of the crime. Danny believes this jacket belongs to another client – and he knows the pair were having an affair.
The central premise of this novel is what Danny will do with this knowledge. Will he come forward, talk to police, and no doubt be deported? Or will he say nothing and let a murderer go free? As Danny wrestles with his conscience, he must answer a key a question – does a person living without rights still have responsibilities?
This is a thought-provoking moral struggle, and an insightful read into what it could be like to be living illegally in a first-world country.
Reviewer: Karen McMillan
Published by Macmillan