running in the family

"Running in the Family " Michael Ondaatje 's quest to discover his family 's roots in his native Sri Lanka is a rich mix of documentary personal reminiscence , poetic bursts and hilarious comedy , arranged more psychologically than chronologically . The basic plot of this story revolves around Michael Ondaatje who is a Sri Lankan ymigry to Canada Now , after years of living abroad , he returns to his native island of Ceylon to explore the history of his parents and their family . The Ondaatjes are a notable family in Sri Lankan society , and the author 's

br father was drunken personality lighting up the landscape of his generation . His mother is less morose , more talkative and vivacious , but is eventually wounded by his father 's drunken escapades . She moves on leaving his father to find a new life , without who was probably his one big romance "He had rented extravagant rooms in Cambridge and simply eliminated the academic element of university , making close friends among the students reading contemporary novels , boating and making a name for himself as someone who knew exactly what was valuable and interesting in the Cambridge circles of the 1920s So begins Michael Ondaatje 's novel of his family history . This novel uses poetry , prose and the "reported speech " of others to tell its story , but this one is more stitched together , perhaps because the author himself is more obviously present . Ondaatje 's prose is luminous and his poetry makes Sri Lanka a tangible presence . The author generously included several of his poems in the middle of the book "The Cinnamon Peeler , with its strong sensuality , serves as a fitting metaphor for the stories about romantic interludes in the author 's family

Ondaatje also masterfully uses the oral histories he gleans from aunts uncles , siblings and cousins to weave a story that he tells with wit and compassion . It is a beautifully written history /memoir , with a tone of magical realism about it . There is much here that one can learn about Sri Lanka , its history , its tropical culture and its idiosyncratic moods . And there is the evocative tale of Ondaatje 's father , mother grandmother , and , to a lesser extent , others in the family . While the story is a more or less historical one , Ondaatje 's writing is poetic The story seems fictional and fantastic , and one might come away wanting to be able to write so about one 's own family

The third section "Don 't Talk to Me about Matisse " is a literary treasure ! Ondaatje weaves a travel journal with childhood memories Ondaatje 's journey through Sri Lanka and memory land is depicted with great passion and reflection "I witnessed everything . One morning I would wake and just smell things for the whole day , it was so rich I had to select senses . And still everything moved slowly with the assured fateful speed of a coconut falling on someone 's head , like the Jaffna train , like the fan at low speed , like the necessary sleep in the afternoon...