The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka (Booker Prize WINNER 2022)

Set in Colombo in late 1989 during the Sri Lankan Civil War, The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida follows Maali Almeida, a freelance photojournalist who awakens in the afterlife with no memory of his death. Given seven moons (days) to settle his affairs before moving to the Light, Maali must navigate a bureaucratic purgatory populated by vengeful ghosts, suicide victims, and demonic spirits. His mission is to locate hidden photographs documenting government atrocities and convince his living friends to expose them, while uncovering the truth about his own murder. The novel employs second-person narration and blends Buddhist, Catholic, and Hindu spiritual concepts to create a darkly comedic exploration of violence, redemption, and moral responsibility.

Chats with the Dead refers to the earlier 2020 incarnation of Shehan Karunatilaka's novel that later became known as The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida, sharing a protagonist who navigates death and memory. The work combines satire, grief, and supernatural elements to confront the consequences of civil conflict in Sri Lanka. Through the narrator's ghostly perspective, the book interrogates journalism's role, personal culpability, and historical erasure. It moves between darkly comic observations and harrowing descriptions of violence, using inventive narrative devices to explore moral accountability. The book helped establish Karunatilaka's international reputation prior to the novel's Booker recognition.

The novel is set in 1862 during the American Civil War and revolves around the death of Willie Lincoln, the 11-year-old son of President Abraham Lincoln. After Willie's death from typhoid fever, his spirit finds itself in a limbo known as the bardo, a concept borrowed from Tibetan Buddhism. Here, he encounters a diverse group of ghosts who are also trapped between the world of the living and the afterlife. The story delves into themes of grief, both personal and national, as Lincoln grapples with the loss of his son amidst the broader context of the Civil War. The novel is characterized by its unique narrative style, which includes a multitude of voices and historical quotes, and its exploration of the human experience of suffering and love.

The Exorcist, written by William Peter Blatty, tells the story of Regan MacNeil, a 12-year-old girl who becomes possessed by an evil spirit. Her mother, Chris MacNeil, a successful actress, seeks help from two priests: Father Damien Karras, a Jesuit priest and psychiatrist struggling with his faith, and Father Lankester Merrin, an elderly priest with experience in exorcisms. The novel explores themes of faith, redemption, and the battle between good and evil as the priests perform an exorcism to save Regan. The story is intense and graphic, delving into the psychological and supernatural aspects of the possession and the exorcism process. It was inspired by a real-life case of demonic possession in the 1940s and has become a classic in the horror genre.