Anil's Ghost by Michael Ondaatje

Michael Ondaatje first came to international attention with his gorgeous novel, The English Patient, which won the Booker Prize. It cannot be easy for a writer to follow up on such acclaim, but with Anil's Ghost he does just that. And though the two novels are vastly different in scope and subject, Anil's Ghost is as lovely, thought provoking, and unforgettable as the first.

Anil's Ghost takes place in Sri Lanka during the early 1990s in the days following the "emergency" (read civil war) of the late 80's. Anil Tissera is a young Sri Lankan expatriate who has returned to the island after being educated abroad. She is a forensic anthropologist sent by an international human rights group to investigate disappearances and organized murders perpetuated by the government against citizens thought to be involved in one of two anti-government insurgent groups. Anil is assigned by the "cooperative" Sri Lankan government to work with an archeaologist, named Sarath Diyasena, who may or may not be sympathetic with her work.

The story centers around Anil's and Sarath's investigation, so there is a mystery at the heart of the novel, but Ondaatje gracefully weaves the stories of other characters into it as well. For every clue the scientists uncover as they build a case against the government, we learn of the human cost of civil war on the families of the victims, on the doctors who treat them, on the fabric of a society torn apart by fear and mistrust. The incredible thing about this novel is that while the story is often heartbreaking, Ondaatje offers it to us honestly and with a forthrightness that is never grotesque or hard to bear.

In fact, the novel is very beautiful despite its subject matter. Ondaatje, who was born in Sri Lanka, has a keen sense of place and it is vividly shown in Anil's Ghost. As we follow Anil and Sarath from one part of the island to the other in their search for truth, we catch glimpses of a landscape that still has pockets of its original beauty. We learn of the ancient culture and values of a land that has not always been embroiled in bloodshed. There are passages so lovely they beg to be immediately re-read and thought about. The novel is one that, after the first reading, can be opened at random points and read again, each small section adding another layer of meaning for the reader.

The many layers of meaning in this novel are best symbolized by the title itself. The question for the reader is: who is Anil's Ghost? Or what is Anil's Ghost? As I read the novel I had one idea, then I re-read sections to try to prove this idea to myself. But those new readings added different ideas. I think now, after looking at it from a few different angles, I have my definite answer to the question of who or what Anil's Ghost is....

(...0h, you didn't think I'd tell you, did you?)