Here is an initial selection of some of the books we have found to be the most illuminating on our journey to a deeper understanding of this fascinating island, which Marco Polo, and many others since, have described as the most beautiful in the world.

We will be updating the following selection of recommended titles throughout the year.

Architecture/Photography/Art

Tropical Houses by Tim Street Porter
The 43 Group by Neville Weereratne
Geoffrey Bawa by Brian Brace Taylor
Costumes of Sri Lanka by K. D. G. Wimalartne
British Period Architecture in Sri Lanka by Lakshman Alwis

Cuisine

Exotic Tastes of Sri Lanka by Suharshini Seneviratne
Food of Sri Lanka: Authentic Recipes from the Island of Gems by Douglas Bullis
Leith’s Indian and Sri Lankan Cookery by Priya Wickramsinghe
My Way, A Collection of Recipes by Koluu
Serendip by Peter Kuruvita

Biographies/Autobiographies

Geoffrey Bawa by David Robson
Woolf in Ceylon: An Imperial Journey in the Shadow of Leonard Woolf, 1904-1911 by Christopher Ondaatje
The Rifle and Hound in Ceylon by Sir Samuel W. Baker
Great Days: Memoirs of a Ceylon Government Medical Officer of 1918 by P. R. C. Peterson
Swimming in the Monsoon Sea by Shyam Selvadurai
The View from Serendip by Arthur C. Clarke
Images of Sri Lanka through American Eyes by H. A. I. Goonetileke
The Man-Eater of Punanai: A Journey of Discovery to the Jungles of Old Ceylon by Christopher Ondaatje
The Reefs of Taprobane by Arthur C. Clarke
An Invisible Spectator by Christopher Sawyer-Laucanno

Fiction

The Hamilton Case by Michelle De Kretser
The Village in the Jungle by Leonard Woolf
Anil’s Ghost by Michael Ondaatje The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje Running in the Family by Michael Ondaatje
Elephant Walk by Robert Standish
At the Water’s Edge by Pradeep Jeganathan
July by Karen Roberts
Heavens Edge by Romesh Gunasekera The Sandglass by Romesh Gunasekera Monkfish Moon by Romesh Gunasekera Reef by Romesh Gunasekera
Colombo by Carl Muller Yakada Yaka by Carl Muller The Jam Fruit Tree by Carl Muller
A Disobedient Girl by Ru Freeman
All is Burning by Jean Arasanayagam In the Garden Secretly by Jean Arasanayagam
Chinaman: The Legend of Pradeep Mathew by Shehan Karunathilake
The Fountains of Paradise by Arthur C. Clarke
The Pleasures of conquest by Yasmine Gooneratne
Cinnamon Gardens by Shyam Selvadurai
When memory Dies by A Sivanandan
Desire and Other Stories by Anne Ranasinghe
Trussed by Shiromi Pinto
Funny Boy by Shyam Selvadurai
Murder in the Pettah by Jeanne Cambrai

Guide Books

Sri Lanka Lonely Planet Guide by Lonely Planet
Luxe Sri Lanka by Luxe City Guides
Geoffrey Bawa by Brian Brace Taylor
Footprint Guide to Sri Lanka by Edward Aves
British Period Architecture in Sri Lanka by Lakshman Alwis
Around the Fort in 80 Lives by Juliet Coombe

History

A History of Sri Lanka by K. M. de Silva
The Most Dangerous Moment by Michael Tomlinson
Nobodies to Somebodies: The Rise of the Colonial Bourgeoisie in Sri Lanka by Kumari Jayawardena
The Dutch Forts of Sri Lanka by W.A. Nelson
Illustrations and Views of Dutch Ceylon, 1602-1796 by Sir Samuel W. Baker
An Historical Relation of the Island Ceylon by Robert Knox
Only Man is Vile by William McGowan

Lifestyle

Living in Sri Lanka by Turtle Bunbury / James Fennell
Asian Elements by Jane Edwards / Andrew Wood
Sri Lanka Style: Tropical Design and Architecture by Dominic Sansoni
Costumes of Sri Lanka by Tim Street Porterl
The Book of Tea by Alain Stella

Maps

Insight Map Sri Lanka by American Map Corporation
The Rough Guide to Sri Lanka Map by Rough Guides

Wild Life

A Photographic Guide to Birds of Sri Lanka by Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne
Snakes and Other Reptiles of Sri Lanka by Indraneil Das/ Anslem de Silva
The Rough Guide to Sri Lanka Map by Rough Guides

Poetry

Elephant and Ice by Rienzi W. G Crusz
China Bay Blues by Afdhel Aziz
Modern Sri Lankan Poetry: An Anthology by Sri Satguru Publications
Nothing Prepares You by Vivimarie Van Der Poorten

Plant Life and Green Things

Sri Lanka’s Magnificent Cloud Forests By W. Werner
A Guide to the Mangrove Flora of Sri Lanka by P.K. De Silva, & M. De Silva
Ecology of Sinharaja Rain Forest and the Forest Dynamics Plot by Savitri GunatillekeCommon Shrubs and Trees of Sri Lanka by Prof. Nimal and Savitri Gunatilleke
Horton Plains: Sri Lanka’s Cloud-Forest National Park by Rohan Pethiyagoda
Pearls, Sprices and Green Gold by Rohan Pethiyagoda
The Royal Botanical Gardens by Bandara Palipana

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