Erie Reader Book Club: January 2026
The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka
SUNDAY, JAN. 25
The Erie Reader Book Club will be reading and discussing the novel The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka in conjunction with the Best of Erie issue.
In selecting a novel that matches our 'Best Of' theme, we often look to those that have won a prestigious award or prize. Last year's selection was Jesmyn Ward's Salvage the Bones, which won the National Book Award for Fiction in 2011. This year's choice follows suit with Shehan Karunatilaka's The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida, which won the 2022 Booker Prize.
The story follows Maali Almeida, a Sri Lankan war photographer who has been murdered and wakes up dead in what appears to be a celestial visa office. With no idea who killed him – the list of suspects is long – he finds that even in the afterlife his time is running out.
Over the course of just one week (which the book defines as seven moons), Maali will be able to travel between the afterlife and our world to accomplish the seemingly impossible: solve the mystery of his own death while also leading his loved ones to a set of photographs that, if released, will expose the truths behind the Sri Lankan Civil War.
1 p.m. // Werner Books and Coffee, 2608 Liberty St. // Free to join, cost of book not included // For more info: wernerbooks.com
