The Flower Boy: A Novel (Vintage International)

An accomplished debut The Flower Boyis the tragically romantic story of people from two cultures one ruling the other and the human passions that defy and nearly overcome social taboos.. In the colonial society of 1930s Ceylon the separation between servant and master is clearly drawn. Young Chandi however knows that the baby born to his mother’s mistress will be his friend. And indeed their friendship blossoms in the lush gardens of the tea plantation on which they live. Many English and Ceylonese are troubled by the friendship but the English planter is charmed by the children’s bond and ultimately by Chandi’s mother Premawathi. But the world encroaches on their Eden. Beautifully observed compellingly plotted The Flower Boy is a compassionate novel of a lost world and those who struggled to hold on to it.