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The Boat People

Sharon Bala

3.99 · Rating details · 6,336 ratings · 936 reviews

When a rusty cargo ship carrying Mahindan and five hundred fellow refugees from Sri Lanka's bloody civil war reaches Vancouver's shores, the young father thinks he and his six-year-old son can finally start a new life. Instead, the group is thrown into a detention processing center, with government officials and news headlines speculating that among the "boat people" are m ...more

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352 pages

Published January 2018 by Doubleday

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Jul 25, 2017 Angela M rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley-reviews

3.5 rounded up.

This book tackles a difficult and timely topic based on a true event that occurred in Canada in 2010 with the arrival of a ship from Sri Lanka carrying nearly 500 refugees seeking asylum. This is an important story reflecting on an issue that is front and center right now in countries across the world. Through three alternating narratives, Sharon Bala gives us a view of the complexity of it all - the process, the red tape of the system, the politics, the emotional and gut wrenchi 3.5 rounded up.

This book tackles a difficult and timely topic based on a true event that occurred in Canada in 2010 with the arrival of a ship from Sri Lanka carrying nearly 500 refugees seeking asylum. This is an important story reflecting on an issue that is front and center right now in countries across the world. Through three alternating narratives, Sharon Bala gives us a view of the complexity of it all - the process, the red tape of the system, the politics, the emotional and gut wrenching stories of the refugees who out of desperation do what they need to do to survive and to save their families . This will impact what they tell, what they don’t tell of their past. They are desperate and don’t want to be deported back to the hell they escaped.

The narrative that impacted me the most was the one centered around Mahindan and his six year old son, Sellian. Through Mahindan’s nightmares, we get glimpses of the horrors of the war they their escape. We also see what life was like - the good times before juxtaposed against these awful times in Sri Lanka and the current detainment is Canada. The other chapters are from the perspective of Priya, a law student and daughter of Sri Lankan immigrants who is assigned to work on some of the cases , including Mahindan’s and Grace, an inexperienced adjudicator for the Refugee Board. Her Japanese grandparents and her mother were held in an internment camp. It took me to about halfway before I could get warmed up to these second two narratives and at first thought that the author tried to cover too much . Thus the 3.5 Stars. There is, though relevance in their family stories when the details are eventually revealed. It was to their family members that I connected once I knew their stories- Grace’s mother Kumi and Priya’s father and uncle.

Overall, not a perfect book. I was a little disappointed in the ending, but it is relevant and thought provoking and for that I rounded up to 4 stars. This was another terrific read with Esil and Diane, whose thoughts I alway appreciate. Since Esil is Canadian, she had a better perspective on the politics and public views on this event, which was very helpful.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Doubleday Books through NetGalley. ...more

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Jan 03, 2018 Diane S ☔ rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2018-read

3.5 The refugee crisis has been prominent in many of our countries, the concern for safety of the current citizens, versus those who are looking for a safe place to land and start over. In this book a ship of Sri Lankan refugees , over five hundred, some women and children, but mainly men, seek sanctuary in Canada. How to rate a book with such a strong political message, where one learns so much about the process these refugees go through when entering a foreign country, and one that does such a ...more

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Jan 03, 2019 Jennifer ~ TarHeelReader rated it really liked it

Shelves: hard-soft-copy

3.75 stars!

Mahindan is a young father of a six-year-old son who boards a ship with fellow refugees fleeing Sri Lanka’s civil war. They land in Vancouver thinking they are headed to a better life, but they are quickly put in a detention center. There is speculation that there are violent people among the masses responsible for suicide attacks.

The interrogation of the refugees intensifies, and Mahindan worries he and his son may never have freedom due to the choices he made to get them on the shi ...more

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Jan 03, 2018 Esil rated it really liked it

3.5 stars. There are some risks involved in writing fiction based on real events. An author may take liberties for the sake of the story, but then the liberties can be distracting to the reader... The Boat People was mostly good with some distractions.

The Boat People is based on the real story of a boat arriving on the shores of British Columbia in 2010 with around 500 Sri Lankans seeking refugee status: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Su.... Bala has built a novel around this event by focusi 3.5 stars. There are some risks involved in writing fiction based on real events. An author may take liberties for the sake of the story, but then the liberties can be distracting to the reader... The Boat People was mostly good with some distractions.

The Boat People is based on the real story of a boat arriving on the shores of British Columbia in 2010 with around 500 Sri Lankans seeking refugee status: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/MV_Su.... Bala has built a novel around this event by focusing on a number of characters affected in different ways, including a single father refugee claimant - Mahindan -and his 6 year old son, a young articling student -Priya - recruited by a senior lawyer at her firm to assist in representing the claimants, and a newly appointed adjudicator -Grace - charged with deciding whether refugees are to remain in detention and whether their claims will be accepted. In each case, Bala gives the characters their own backstories - Mahindan tried to dodge recruitment by the Tamil Tigers as best he could, Priya is also of Sri Lankan background but knows little about the circumstances that brought her family to Canada many years earlier, and Grace is of Japanese Canadian background and her parents were interned during WWII.

The stories Bala builds for Mandihan and Priya are very rich, and they go a long way to showing the complexity of the circumstances under which people seek to leave a violent home country. People make difficult choices to survive, and the hosting countries then have to sift through their history and choices to decide whether they are in need of protection and whether they pose any threat. As The Boat People progressed, these characters’ stories became increasingly complex and nuanced. This is very much the strength in Bala’s novel.

I had a much harder time with Grace’s character. She was depicted as a hapless conservative political appointment who was ill equipped to perform her duties. She was also portrayed as under the influence of a boorish unethical Minister who was involved in her appointment. I found this aspect of the story heavy handed. It seemed like Bala had an underlying political message that was giving way to what could have been a much more interesting and subtle character and story line.

Still, there is a lot I liked about The Boat People, and I was certainly emotionally engaged with many parts of the story.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read an advance copy. And thanks again to Angela and Diane for reading this one along with me, and for commiserating about the cold at the same time! -22 Celsius today makes for another good day of reading hibernation. ...more

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Apr 11, 2018 Kai Spellmeier rated it really liked it

Shelves: owned

“Hope was a dangerous thing to lose.”

Sharon Bala's debut novel is a touching and emotional journey from war-torn Sri Lanka all the way to the coast of Canada.

When a refugee boat with over 500 Tamil people arrives after a long and hard trip, their passengers are divided into male and female and taken to prisons for shelter. Here they have to wait and hope not to be sent back, which would mean their deaths. However, the Canadian government won't make it easy for them to set foot on open Canadian “Hope was a dangerous thing to lose.”

Sharon Bala's debut novel is a touching and emotional journey from war-torn Sri Lanka all the way to the coast of Canada.

When a refugee boat with over 500 Tamil people arrives after a long and hard trip, their passengers are divided into male and female and taken to prisons for shelter. Here they have to wait and hope not to be sent back, which would mean their deaths. However, the Canadian government won't make it easy for them to set foot on open Canadian ground, because it fears that this might be a scheme to bring terrorist to their country. After months and months of death, violence, loss and hunger, they have to sit through countless hearings and tests that will decide over their fates.

Three different characters lead us through the story: Mahindan, a widower and father, who hopes to build a new life with his son, Priya, a law student who works on Mahindan's case, and Grace, who has the last word on who is allowed to stay and who gets deported. The alternating POV's draw an intriguing and balanced picture of the arrival, the legal battle and the personal struggles of everyone involved. The many characters in this story might seem overwhelming at first but the love for detail in their characterisations and backgrounds makes them ever so real. Apart from the story's central conflict - the arrival of the refugees and their path to being admitted - we also meet their family, coworkers, friends and partners. It's incredible how much thought the author has put into these characters, their fears and their dreams. And even minor characters go through well-written character development.

I don't want to say too much about the plot itself, except that it never once got boring. It's a rounded story, without going too much into detail, otherwise, this book would have been 300 pages longer. We get to see disturbing, bittersweet and happy moments in these character's lives.

Overall, I'm thankful I got to read this book. I would never have known about the war in Sri Lanka, the process of admitting refugees to a country, and Tamil culture in general. I hope more and more people are going to read this novel. It's a diverse, complicated and moving book. (view spoiler)

Thank you to Penguin Random House for this review copy!

Find more of my books on Instagram ...more

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Jan 24, 2021 Bren fall in love with the sea. rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommended to Bren fall in love with the sea. by: Jennifer ~ TarHeelReader

Shelves: cultural, social-issues, recommended-by, better-or-worse-than-expected, suspense, dark-and-heavy, read-and-reviewed

“Did she now know what it was like to have so little agency? To be faced with such cruel options it was as if there was no choice at all?”
― Sharon Bala, The Boat People

My Review:

Before I even start, I must comment on the exquisite cover art, which is beautiful and perfect for the story itself.

The Boat People is not for the faint of heart, which I kind of am. Though I read many a dark book, this one I had reservations about reading due to what I figured would be the heart breaking content and the ...more

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Aug 01, 2017 Nancy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley

We may have all come on different ships but we're in the same boat now. Martin Luther King Jr.
Who leaves their home unless under duress? The place of one's nativity, where one's ancestors are buried, the house that contains so many memories are not given up lightly. To be a refugee, an immigrant, means to be cast off freewheeling into the unknown mists of the future, without mooring or a known destination.

The Boat People is Sharon Bala's debut novel.

Mahindan fled Sri Lanka with his son Sellian w We may have all come on different ships but we're in the same boat now. Martin Luther King Jr.
Who leaves their home unless under duress? The place of one's nativity, where one's ancestors are buried, the house that contains so many memories are not given up lightly. To be a refugee, an immigrant, means to be cast off freewheeling into the unknown mists of the future, without mooring or a known destination.

The Boat People is Sharon Bala's debut novel.

Mahindan fled Sri Lanka with his son Sellian when there was nothing left. The Tamil Tigers had been fighting for their rights under the Singhs for years, turning both the willing and the unwilling into terrorists. The United Nations had pulled out and there was no protection. His wife dead, his village bombed, Mahindan and his son join the stream of refugees, ending up in a camp. Their suffering becomes unendurable, the dream of Canada enchanting. Mahindan raises money for a boat out of Sri Lanka.

Arriving in Canada, the 503 refugees are secluded in holding places, women and children in one place and the men in another, families broken apart. Mahindan is on trial to prove he is not a Tiger terrorist, while his son goes to a foster home and becomes Westernized.

Priya represents the legal counsel for the refugees, sidelined into the work because of her Tamil heritage. She is resentful as she wanted experience in corporate law, and because she identifies as Canadian whose grandparents happen to be from Sri Lanka. The refugee work is exhausting and disturbing. Then her uncle reveals the truth of her family's past.

Grace is a temporary government assigned lawyer. Canada is immersed in xenophobia and fear. All Tamils are considered possible terrorists and she is to do everything possible to find reasons to deport the boat people back to Sri Lanka.

Grace's grandmother in suffering the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, which brings old memories to the forefront. An Issei, first generation Japanese Canadian, she becomes an activist for the Japanese Canadians who were interred during WWII, losing their homes and businesses which now have become valuable real estate. She warns Grace that she is participating in the same kind of racism experienced the Japanese--everyone in a group considered an enemy until proven innocent.

I learned about Canada's parallels to American fear of foreigners as potential terrorists and about the history of Sri Lanka in modern times.

The Boat People is similar to other books I have recently read, such as This Is How It Begins by Joan Dempsey, warning about the implication of current events through the lens of our admitted past mistakes, and involving a courtroom setting.

Sharon Bala's book is interesting and thoughtful, a fine addition to recent novels addressing timely issues in immigration, post 9-11 fears, and learning how to connect our past mistakes to our current policy. Read an excerpt at http://sharonbala.com/excerpt

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review. ...more

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Jul 07, 2018 Taryn rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-release, bipoc-author, fiction

Considering the current crisis at the U.S./Mexico border, with children being separated from parents and asylum seekers being treated like criminals, this seems like a good time to learn what it’s like to be a refugee. Although Bala’s book is set Canada, not the U.S., and her characters are from Sri Lanka, not Mexico and Central America, the themes of the novel felt highly relevant to me. It doesn’t matter what language you speak or what culture you come from, the desperation that comes from lea ...more

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Mar 01, 2018 The Pfaeffle Journal (Diane) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018

In August 2010, the merchant vessel Sun Sea arrived at Esquimalt naval base in British Columbia, carrying hundreds of Sri Lankan asylum seekers. Sri Lanka had been in a state of civil war for twenty-five years.

Before Sri Lanka gained independence, the British brought in millions of Tamil to work their vast cash crop plantations of coffee, and later of rubber and tea. Colonial officials brought in approximately a million Tamil speakers from India to work as plantation labor. The Sinhalese majorit ...more

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Feb 07, 2018 Krista rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018, can-con

Mahindan turned his back to the railing and slid down to sit on the deck. Exhaustion whenever he thought of the future; terror when he remembered the past. He yawned and pressed a cheek to raised knees, then tucked his arms in for warmth. At least here on the boat they were safe from attack. Ruksala, Prem, Chithra's mother and father. The roll call of the dead lulled him to sleep.

The Boat People means well – invoking the real life story of the MV Sun Sea (a cargo ship that arrived in Vancouv
Mahindan turned his back to the railing and slid down to sit on the deck. Exhaustion whenever he thought of the future; terror when he remembered the past. He yawned and pressed a cheek to raised knees, then tucked his arms in for warmth. At least here on the boat they were safe from attack. Ruksala, Prem, Chithra's mother and father. The roll call of the dead lulled him to sleep.

The Boat People means well – invoking the real life story of the MV Sun Sea (a cargo ship that arrived in Vancouver in 2010 with nearly 500 Sri Lankan asylum seekers on board), with attempts to reconsider that event in the light of today's refugee crises – but it's not a very well written book and I have a problem with rating a work highly just because the subject matter is important. There's nothing nuanced about this storyline – it's more polemic than literature – and although I suppose I'm meant to feel badly for not believing that Canada should have open arms to everyone who arrives via whatever channel, this is a preaching-to-the-choir book, not one intended to open hearts or change minds like my own. Again: important =/= good.

The plot follows the storylines of three people: Mahindan, along with his young son, is a refugee on the cargo ship, and his story is split between the past – detailing the rise of the Tamil Tigers and the dangers he faced trying to escape the ensuing Civil War – and the present, in which he is kept in a separate detention facility than his son, up against the demoralising bureaucracy of a Canadian government exercising an excess of caution with his claim. We also meet Priya – born in Canada to Sri Lankan parents who emigrated before the war, she is an articling law student who is enlisted in the refugees' defence against her wishes – and Grace, a third generation Japanese-Canadian who has been appointed, without any prior experience or law training, as an adjudicator in the refugees' processing. Of the three, Mahindan's is the most engaging story – completely innocent of any wrongdoing, he has always been a good man doing his best to keep his son safe in a dangerous world – and obviously, the fact that he is an ideal claimant for refugee status makes it especially frustrating to see him lumped in with “suspected terrorists”. Priya's character seems included to show a progression of empathy as she learns of her family's hidden history and concludes that not all Tamil Tigers (despite being labelled a terrorist organisation by the Canadian government) are bad guys. And Grace's character was the weakest to me: appointed by a Law and Order Cabinet Minister, she is under orders to take no chances with even a whiff of threat to the country; so despite the fact that her Alzheimer's-suffering mother is suddenly obsessed with the memory of having been sent to an internment camp for Japanese-Canadians during WWII, Grace is oblivious to her own role in this history repeating itself.

The narrative is totally one-sided, with the Public Safety Minister's speeches being compared to a dog whistle (a derogatory metaphor we all understand), and despite the fact that a Google search of Canada + Tamil Tigers brings up a raft of articles on those Sri Lankhan refugees/immigrants who have used Canada as a base for funneling arms and money back to the Tigers over the years (interestingly, these articles also demonstrate how nearly impossible it is for us the deport anyone once they've been let in), in author Sharon Bala's account, five hundred people who arrive illegally in our country should all be taken at their word and rubber-stamped quickly through the immigration process. When Mahindan's son is placed with a white foster family (because it seems a kindness to take him out of the women and children's detention facility and there are no local Tamil families approved to act as foster families), Priya's sense of outrage is finally engaged:

She'd already had this argument with Gigovaz. Haven't we learned our lesson on this? she'd railed. Stealing children from their Native parents and putting them in white homes? What's next? A special school run by pedophiles?

So, I wasn't persuaded by the politics of this book, and as for the writing, it felt very ham-fisted; and especially in those chapters where something running in the background serves as a metaphor for the foreground action. In an early chapter, as Priya and her family first learn of and discuss the Tamils on the cargo ship, David Suzuki (of course) is on the TV in the background, narrating the film of a research study that showed monkeys acting out when they suspect that one of their number has received an unfair advantage; as the men in the detention centre discuss their cases, Mohindan is watching The Price is Right and mentally comparing the frantic face of a contestant to the poise of the model showing off a brand new car (because just living over the divide in the world of the prizes, the model was already a winner); Priya and her family having a political discussion around the Scrabble board and punctuating their points by unconsciously playing P-R-O-T-E-C-T or Z-E-A-L; Mohindan and others back in Sri Lankha trying to decide if it was time to flee as their sons play on a nearby see-saw. And there is a wearying attention to what characters are doing with their hands – no dialogue can be recounted without learning if the speaker is steepling his fingers under his chin, flicking her wrist dismissively, or “pressing the air up and down with his palms”.

I didn't like this book in the line-by-line writing, and I didn't like the overall structure and conclusions. In short, I unapologetically didn't like this (despite recognising the effort to add to an important and timely debate). ...more

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Dec 19, 2018 Kathleen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, canadian-author, read-in-2018, canada-reads-finalists, canadian-literature, 4-star-books, fiction

"We may have all come on different ships,
but we're in the same boat now. "
-Martin Luther King Jr.

THE BOAT PEOPLE by Sharon Bala was inspired by the arrival of the Ocean Lady and the MV Sun Sea on the coast of British Columbia in October 2009 and August 2010, bearing together just over 550 Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka. Although THE BOAT PEOPLE is a work of fiction, many of the circumstances depicted in both Sri Lanka and Canada are based in fact.

I love it when I learn from the books I read. "We may have all come on different ships,
but we're in the same boat now. "
-Martin Luther King Jr.

THE BOAT PEOPLE by Sharon Bala was inspired by the arrival of the Ocean Lady and the MV Sun Sea on the coast of British Columbia in October 2009 and August 2010, bearing together just over 550 Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka. Although THE BOAT PEOPLE is a work of fiction, many of the circumstances depicted in both Sri Lanka and Canada are based in fact.

I love it when I learn from the books I read. By reading THE BOAT PEOPLE I learned about the Sri Lankan civil war and some of the incidents leading up to it, living conditions, terror and hardships the refugees suffered through to reach freedom from persecution, and Canada's legal system the refugees must go through before being granted refugee status or be deported.

The young father Mahindan is overcome with relief when the rusty cargo ship carrying him
and his six-year-old son Sellian and five hundred fellow refugees reaches the shores of British Columbia, Canada. Mahindan and Sellian can put the bloody civil war of Sri Lanka behind them and begin new lives.
Alas, they are all put in prison and Sellian is not allowed in the same prison as his father. Government officials and news headlines speculate that members of a terrorist militia are hidden among the "boat people".
Sharon Bala writes the story through the perspectives of three characters: Priya, Mahindan's lawyer who reluctantly represents the migrants, Grace, a third-generation Japanese-Canadian adjudicator who must decide Mahindan's fate, and Mahindan, both in the present and in the past.
There are a lot of characters in the novel, which initially seemed overwhelming, but proved to be pertinent in giving the reader a compassionate lens through which to view the current refugee crisis.

I agree with the following quote by Lynne Kutsukake, author of The Translation of Love.
"The Boat People is a powerful, gripping moral drama told with deep compassion and humanity. Sharon Bala takes us behind the headlines about refugees and asylum seekers straight into the beating hearts of unforgettable human beings. A timely tale and a beautiful, remarkable debut."
Sharon Bala's stunning debut THE BOAT PEOPLE is an unforgettable and necessary story for our times. 4 stars ...more

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Jan 10, 2018 Kate Olson rated it it was amazing

Shelves: adult-reads, advanced-reader-copies

There are certain books that enter into our lives for a purpose, and this is one of those books for me. This heartbreaking look at the refugee crisis in general, and specifically that of Sri Lankan refugees being detained in Canada, was an educationally rich experience for me, and one that pushed a critical issue back into the front of my mind. Through Bala's characters, readers are presented with complex philosophical and political issues in a thought-provoking format that makes even the most k ...more

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Jul 05, 2018 Charlsa rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-mmd-summer-reading-challenge

I was surprised by this book. It is a work of fiction concerning the Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka that immigrated by ship to Canada. It is apparent the author researched the subject extensively and created a great story. I knew nothing about the subject before reading this book. The thing I most enjoyed about this book is that the author didn't choose a "side". She presented everyone's point of view and did a great job of illustrating that immigration issues aren't as black and white as one mig ...more

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Jul 04, 2018 Cheryl rated it it was amazing

OUTSTANDING!!! Beautifully told, refreshing writing. This transpires along Canada's border, but the timely relevance to current American headlines is UNCANNY. And to finish this on our Independence Day is quite moving. What a gift this author has given us. And it's her debut! BRAVA. ...more

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Feb 28, 2018 ♥ Sandi ❣ rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: debut, 1-have, arc-giveaway, cultural

3 stars-Thank you to Keep Turing Pages and Doubleday for the chance to read and review this book.

This book would have been a 4 star book for me had the author added the needed quotation marks to her story. However, since I find the lack of quotation marks to be interrupting and annoying while reading a novel, I will automatically deduct one star from the review.

The premise of this story is very much in the current headlines today. Immigration is a well written and thoroughly discussed topic. B ...more

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Jan 26, 2018 Rebecca rated it really liked it

Shelves: reviewed-bookbag

Based on a real-life refugee crisis that hit Canada in 2009, Bala’s debut novel illuminates all sides of the issue by focusing on a father and son who travel from Sri Lanka to Vancouver Island by boat, their lawyers, and the Japanese-Canadian adjudicator who is to decide on their case. The message about the necessity of compassion might not be very subtle, but it’s an important one given the plight of refugees around the world today. There is always a danger of history repeating itself, but gett ...more

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Feb 20, 2018 Allison ༻hikes the bookwoods༺ rated it really liked it

Shelves: x-canada-reads, canadian, x-nl-reads, bingo, newfoundland, bipoc-author, set-2000-present, x-nfld-lab-book-award-for-fiction

The Canada Reads theme this year is one book to open your eyes and that’s exactly how I feel about The Boat People. The book illustrates how most Canadians (excepting only indigenous people) are immigrants. It doesn’t matter that my ancestors came here three hundred years ago, they were once immigrants too. The refugee process is so arbitrary in this country and The Boat People certainly opened my eyes to that.

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Jan 30, 2018 Patrice Hoffman rated it really liked it

Shelves: provided-by-netgalley

The Boat People by Sharon Bala might best be reviewed after tonight's State of the Union address... The Boat People tells the story of immigration from three different viewpoints... VERY different viewpoints. There's no denying the political message behind this read, but instead of focusing there, I'll begin with a good ol' simple review.

For me, the most prolific character was Mahindan. He arrives to Canada's shores with his 6 year old son with the hopes of beginning a new life. He and the othe ...more

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Feb 20, 2018 Celia rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 52-2018, historical-fiction-read, kindle-library, 2018-read, group-bom, audible, canada

In October 2009 and August 2010, the Ocean Lady and the MV Sun Sea, two ships bearing together just over 550 Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka, arrived in British Columbia. Those vessels and their passengers were the inspiration for this novel.

Bala insists that all characters in this book are fictional. Very little is known about the actual Tamil refugees. Bala made these characters up based on the little information she COULD find out.

The book addresses some real and important issues: refugees and ...more

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Dec 18, 2017 Danielle Tremblay rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: en-ai-un, giveaways, récit, histoire, immigrant, émigration, asie

I received this novel by GoodReads giveaways in exchange for an honest review.

I will not summarize this story, but you can read an excellent one written by Nancy here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Warsan Shire, the British-Somali poet wrote:

you have to understand,
no one puts their children in a boat
unless the water is safer than the land.

Sharon Bala won the Journey Prize for her novel whose central portion takes place on the Pacific Ocean between Sri Lanka and Vancouver, British Colum I received this novel by GoodReads giveaways in exchange for an honest review.

I will not summarize this story, but you can read an excellent one written by Nancy here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Warsan Shire, the British-Somali poet wrote:

you have to understand,
no one puts their children in a boat
unless the water is safer than the land.

Sharon Bala won the Journey Prize for her novel whose central portion takes place on the Pacific Ocean between Sri Lanka and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It’s based on this real story: In 2010, Canadian authorities intercepted a rusty Thai freighter carrying 492 refugees from war-ravaged Sri Lanka, the teardrop-shaped island once called Ceylon, off the tip of India.

In Bala’s novel, when the passengers of the Sri Lankan boat come ashore, they mistake the approaching helicopter and Canadian ships for a welcome party. Mahindan and his six-year-old son think that they can finally put the Sri Lankan deadly civil war behind and begin a new life. Instead, the group is thrown into prison, separated in two groups: women and children on one side, men on the other. During this time, government officials and news headlines speculate that terrorist militia members are hidden among the “boat people.” As suspicion mounts and interrogations intensify, Mahindan worried that the desperate actions he took to survive and escape Sri Lanka could jeopardize his and his son’s chances to be resettled in Canada. A chapter heading “Go Home Terorists!” (the misspelling is intentional) exemplifies the not particularly pro-refugee situation at their arrival.

Bala effortlessly gives a human face to what news reports about refugees have reduced to numbers and statistics. She succeeds to make us feel empathy for all her tridimensional characters: Mahindan, a minority Tamil mechanic who is still grieving the loss of his dearly beloved wife, his small son, who is soon dumped in foster care, the assigned, well-meaning, but alcoholic lawyer and Priya, his law student, a second-generation Sri Lankan–Canadian, who reluctantly represents the migrants, and Grace Nakamura, a third-generation Japanese-Canadian adjudicator who is instructed: “Canada has a reputation for being a soft touch.... We must disabuse the world of that notion.” Under this political pressure, Grace must decide Mahindan’s and all the refugees’ fate, but by the last pages, has yet to rule on their status. However, the fact that Grace’s mother endured a World War II internment camp will eventually change Grace’s point of view on the refugees’ situation.

Bala’s writing gets straight to the point, with occasional hints of humor, as when Mahidan encounters his first Western shower. On the other hand, this is not a much nuanced book. I can give you an example that illustrates this comment: “The pungent combination of chili powder, body odour, and urine that wafted ahead of them made Priya hold her breath.” The short, unnumbered but titled chapters go briskly. I’m not sure what I feel about the lack of quotation marks of the dialogues though. But, all in all, this is an insightful and eye-opening book. ...more

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Feb 16, 2018 Brandon rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018, oh-canada, fiction, canada-reads-2018

When a cargo ship carrying several hundred Sri Lankan refugees arrives off the coast of Vancouver, those aboard hope for a new beginning in Canada. The problem? You just can’t walk into the country (or sail in for that matter). There’s a long, drawn out process in claiming refugee status and it doesn’t always work out for those in need. In The Boat People, author Sharon Bala takes inspiration from a real life incident in 2010 to shine a light on that very process spotlighting the refugees, the i When a cargo ship carrying several hundred Sri Lankan refugees arrives off the coast of Vancouver, those aboard hope for a new beginning in Canada. The problem? You just can’t walk into the country (or sail in for that matter). There’s a long, drawn out process in claiming refugee status and it doesn’t always work out for those in need. In The Boat People, author Sharon Bala takes inspiration from a real life incident in 2010 to shine a light on that very process spotlighting the refugees, the immigration lawyers, and the adjudicators involved.

For someone who often reads horror and violent crime fiction, the subject matter in The Boat People weighed heavier on me than some of the more extreme novels I’ve read in the past. From the inhumane conditions aboard the ship to the emotional trauma experienced by separated families, Sharon Bala just ripped my heart out.

Unfortunately, I didn’t find this to be a good read in terms of an engaging story. Generally, I read a lot of plot-heavy quick-moving thrillers and mysteries, and this very much felt like the opposite. Although I’m usually open to reading new genres and authors, I struggled so much with this book. I found that out of the three storylines Bala presented, the only one I really cared about was that of Mahindan, the refugee who had been separated from his son upon arrival. I would have almost prefered to watch a documentary about the Tamil Tigers (terrorist group in Sri Lanka) and the Civil War that caused the refugee crisis. I know that sounds lazy, but I’ve found lately that if a book doesn’t grab me within the first one hundred pages, whatever remains looks like an impossibly tall mountain to climb and that usually adversely affects my enjoyment.

The Boat People absolutely belongs in the Canada Reads competition given its message – that it shouldn’t be “why they should go”, but rather “why they should stay”. I just felt the execution could have been better. Sharon Bala’s heart was in the right place but given that this is her first novel, I can only imagine that she will grow better with time. ...more

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Jul 02, 2018 Brooke — brooklynnnnereads rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: giveaways, arcs

This was such an in-depth and emotional behind the scenes look at immigration and those who are refugees.

An especially important novel in this current political climate; however, I think this novel will important regardless of the year.

This story follows multiple points of view from the individual refugee to the person assisting in making the decision on whether they stay in the country or not.

I definitely recommend this novel as it’s eye opening, thought provoking, and important. I know it’s ...more

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Mar 01, 2018 Heather(Gibby) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: canadian-author

I loved so many things about this book. Mostly I liked how it showed how complicated immigration issues can be and that there are no black and white answers to some difficult questions. I also felt it exposed how those who gain a position by political patronage are not always qualified to make the significant decisions they are tasked with.

I have read 4 of the 5 contenders for Canada Reads (still need to read Forgiveness), but so far this is the one I will be rooting for

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Mar 17, 2018 Allison rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-bingo, 2018-canada-reads

Good, yes, and this book does a fine job of illustrating the complexities of leaving your home country in the wake of war. It also shines a strong light on the outrageous impossibility of the resultant jobs of people like immigration officers who are left to interpret and judge those complexities.

Are our immigration people prepared enough, educated enough? How can they possibly be able to eek out any clear pictures in these wild refugee stories/realities? The confusing reality of these roles of ...more

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Jul 19, 2018 Emmkay rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, book-club, war-and-peace, canadian, 2018-reads

A ‘wrenched from the headlines’ novel about a boatload of migrants that arrives in Vancouver from Sri Lanka. Bala writes from a variety of perspectives to show the experiences of a Tamil father separated from his young son by immigration detention, a young lawyer who gradually becomes invested in the migrants’ fate and in her own family background, and an Immigration and Refugee Board member anxious not to inadvertently admit a terrorist. Some of it was a bit simplistic and but it was a good, th ...more

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Feb 01, 2018 ebookclassics rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: canlit, 2018

The Boat People is a really impressive debut novel by Sharon Bala, Based on real events that took place in the early 00s, the book explores the social and emotional issues related to accepting refugees from war-torn Sri Lanka into Canada. She tells the story through the eyes of several characters, including Mahindan, a widowed Tamil father; Priya, a young Canadian law student with a Tamil background; and Grace, an adjudicator whose mother and grandparents were sent to a Japanese internment camp ...more

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Oct 28, 2017 Rachel Stansel rated it it was amazing

The Boat People is the fictional story of one man and his son's experience fleeing Sri Lanka. In addition to his experience, we follow a young lawyer and one of the governmental employees assigned to determine who stays in Canada and who is to be deported. I knew nothing about the history of the Tamil people and the plight of those who attempted to flee not just to Canada but to Australia. In the looming fear of terrorism, the determination of who stays and who is returned to almost certain deat ...more

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Jan 28, 2018 Brittany rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Seriously? Thats how it ends??? I need like 50 more pages.

But all jokes aside this book is beautifully written with a heart wrenching story that is relevant to today. The fact that a lot of this book is set in Vancouver, BC brings a familiar feeling to the story that I long for in books these days. I am no longer interested in books set in the US, I would rather read about my own country, and The Boat People really hits home that Canada has its own problems with systematic racism. This story may ...more

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May 31, 2019 Shane rated it really liked it

(This review was originally published in the Sri Lankan Anchorman newspaper - May 2019 edition)

A chilling tale that pits a black & white refugee determining process against the nuances of war, where civilians are trapped in the middle, not knowing that the decisions they make for self-preservation in their war ravaged homeland can make them inadmissible in the land they have fled to.

Based on a true incident, 500 Sri Lankan refugees arrive off the coast of Vancouver in a leaky ship and seek asylu (This review was originally published in the Sri Lankan Anchorman newspaper - May 2019 edition)

A chilling tale that pits a black & white refugee determining process against the nuances of war, where civilians are trapped in the middle, not knowing that the decisions they make for self-preservation in their war ravaged homeland can make them inadmissible in the land they have fled to.

Based on a true incident, 500 Sri Lankan refugees arrive off the coast of Vancouver in a leaky ship and seek asylum. There is a rumour that many on board are part of the terrorist group, the Tamil Tigers, that recently lost its 26-year civil war to Sri Lankan Government forces. What follows is a lengthy and painstaking eligibility-determination process where the new arrivals are subjected to a battery of hearings while being housed in a prison in Canada. The mood of the Canadian political establishment is that they don’t want refugees jumping to the head of the line, especially ones with terrorist ties, and the more of this batch that can be deported the better.

The narrative is covered from three viewpoints: Mahindan, a widowed mechanic in Sri Lanka who has escaped on the boat with his five-year old son Sellian; Priya, a Canadian-born law articling student whose Sri Lankan father and uncle share disparate views on the civil war back home; Grace, the third generation Japanese adjudicator who is battling her own family’s demons caused by their incarceration during WWII.

Mahindan comes across as the most credible and interesting character, for through him we are able to visit the horrors of the final years of the Sri Lankan civil war. We witness the stranglehold the Tigers had on the freedom of their citizens, where forcible conscription took place for children as young as ten. We witness the fall of Kilinochchi, the Tiger stronghold, in 2009, and the retreat by surviving civilians to a strip of land between the ocean and a lagoon where the Tigers made their last tragic stand. Mahindan is a survivor, doing anything that will save his life and that of his son, whether that involves fixing Tiger vehicles, or stealing ID papers of dead people for resale to those looking for escape to foreign lands. Mahindan’s “never give up attitude” and his unflagging love for his son are bright lights in this dark narrative. Priya is conflicted with her role as a budding lawyer and is more concerned with what field of law she should follow after she is called to the bar; her family history in Sri Lanka, which is dredged out slowly—especially her uncle’s dark secret—is more colourful than her own life. Grace, politically appointed to “send them back,” comes across as a cold-hearted, disinterested and distracted woman who has no sympathy for her refugee claimants. She suspects everyone; it is Grace’s mother, Kumi, suffering from dementia, and Grace’s twin teenage daughters, who keep alive the spectre of injustice that was committed by Canadian authorities on disenfranchised Japanese during WWII, and maintain a semblance of grounding for the adjudicator. What is clear is that whatever conflict it was that made a generation of refugees flee their homeland, living in Canada tends to dull those emotions over generations of that family’s residence in this country.

Scenes alternate between prosaic ones in Canada (children organizing birthday parties, teenagers arguing with parents, families playing card games etc.) and diabolical ones in Sri Lanka (civilians being bombed to smithereens while forced to act as shields between the Tigers and the Sri Lankan military). The Canadians are unable to understand what these refugees have gone through as they view the foreigners’ experiences through domestic lenses. Mahindan is exasperated, “These Canadians, with all their creature comforts, have such meagre imaginations.” Gigovaz, the refugee lawyer, replies to Mahindan, “You have come to a place where people are spoiled. It is easier for them to call you a liar than to believe what you say is true.” Mahindan sees that in his own son, who in a matter of months of arrival, is becoming “Canadian” by the day and distancing himself from the traumas that had once united them.

As the months go by, some refugees, especially the women and children, are gradually released into Canadian society while others go through many failed detention hearings, and others are summarily deported. Not everyone takes kindly to a deportation; some verdicts lead to tragic outcomes, and the adjudicators wonder whether they have indirectly become judge, jury and executioner through this process.

I was a bit disappointed in the inconclusive climax and wondered whether by ending where she did, the author was indicating to us where Mahindan’s own case was headed, and therefore why not leave us with him enjoying his best day in Canada with his son? Or whether she wanted each reader to figure out Mahindan’s fate given the flawed refugee determination system we had been exposed to in this novel? The one chilling certainty is that the process hasn’t been refined yet, and the next boatload of refugees arriving from a war zone where allegiances are hard to determine will be faced with the same set of dilemmas.
...more

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Aug 25, 2018 Elizabeth rated it really liked it

Such a thought provoking and nuanced “issues” novel. I really enjoyed all three narrative voices and thought they all equally blended to give a full picture of the issues involved. I was slightly annoyed by the lack of quotation marks - usually a dealbreaker - but it was pretty easy to follow the dialogue. My only real complaint about this one is the stinkin’ ending!!!

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About Sharon Bala

Sharon Bala

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Sharon Bala is trapped on a rock in the cold North Atlantic. Please send mangoes.

Her debut novel, The Boat People, was published by McClelland & Stewart and Doubleday US in January, 2018. The manuscript won the Percy Janes First Novel Award (May 2015) and was short listed for the Fresh Fish Award (October 2015).

In 2017, she won the Journey Prize and had a second story long-listed in the anthology ...more