Love, Life and Reconciliation on a War-torn Island

The perethaya, a creature in Buddhist mythology which can never satisfy its appetite having a pin-hole for a mouth, is the hungry ghost of the title of this novel. It is also a memorable metaphor for its subject matter: the kind of greed which can start wars.

Set in Sri Lanka and Canada, The Hungry Ghosts is a coming-of-age story which follows its protagonist, Shivan Rassiah, in his quest for identity and reconciliation with his dysfunctional family.