How can I sleep? If I sleep I will forget. I will forget what happened. I will wake believing everything is fine. I will reach for Steve, I will wait for my boys. Then I will remember. And that will be too awful. That I must not risk. – Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala
Where to begin? They say you should not judge a book by it’s cover, but I did. It is pitch black with the word “Wave” on it, so I expected darkness. What I did not expect was the glimpses of light that become more frequent as the pages are turned.
Sonali Deaniyagala writes about how she went on Christmas holiday to Sri Lanka in 2004 and lost her sons, husband and parents in the tsunami, and her after this. 70 pages in I sat there thinking, how can this book possibly be longer? How can she move on from something as utterly and unimaginably horrible as this? After finishing the book I honestly still cannot believe that this happened. I read it a while ago, and it is one of those stories that keep popping up in my head.
The book is filled with memories of Sonali’s previous life. The memories I find especially haunting appear when she finally goes back to her home in London and is reminded of all the plans that never were seen through. It made me think of all the things we say we will do later, never second guessing that this will happen. She had bought tickets to see the Nutcracker to go with her youngest son. Sow a badge on a pair of swimming shorts. There were some Christmas presents waiting to be opened once they got back from holiday.
She has her whole persona ripped away from her – her roles as daughter, wife and mother are suddenly gone, and she is faced with strangers saying that “someday you will find someone, don’t worry”, and asking “have you ever thought of having children?” innocent questions that serve as biting reminders of that loss.
Please excuse the state of this copy – I bought it secondhand online.
I would recommend this book to anyone, simply because it’s a story worth listening to, it is thought provoking and most of all: it captures a catastrophe that everyone should know about. In Juan Antoino Bayona’s movie The Impossible (2012), the enormity of the disaster is clear, however (SPOILER ALERT), the fact that they all survive gives you a slightly “happy ending”. I watched the film right after reading this book and could not get out of my head how deeply unfair I found it that these people were reunited when Sonali ended up alone. Wave gives you unsparing insight into that dreadful day, and those that followed. It makes you cherish your dear ones even more and reminds us that life should not be taken for granted.
8/10
Have you read this book? Or would you consider reading it?
Thank you for reading!
xxx – G
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