Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala

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Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala


                On December 26,2014, Sonali Deraniyagala watched as the tsunami came barreling towards Yala Safari Beach Hotel, where she was vacationing with her husband, parents and two young sons. She was the only person in her family to survive. It took days for the bodies of her parents and oldest son to be found. Months before her husband and sons bodies were recovered. The pain and guilt she suffered was eloquently described in the pages of Wave. The shock, the suicidal tendencies, the pills, the fear and the loss were all described by Sonali in this heart wrenching account of survival.
                When I first picked up Wave I expected it to be a harrowing account of survival and the fight to live. I expected a detailed explanation of the tsunami crashing through Sri Lanka, with the roar of the wave blazing through the pages. I got chaos. Indescribable chaos filled with fear and confusion. It was an incredibly honest description of one of the worst natural disasters ever. Sonali made it clear that the loss she felt was all encompassing. The despair, rage, and anger she felt over her survival and the death of her loved ones was raw throughout the entire book. And never ending. It took her months to want to live and years to begin to move towards a new life. The pain was evident and raw. The trauma and depression evident. The guilt was tangible. The loss was heart breaking.

                I can only applaud Sonali Deraniyagala for being as honest as she was throughout this biography. I can’t imagine how painful it was to write and detail her experience in Sri Lanka. Deraniyagala was very detail oriented in recounting the ordeal, describing the pain she felt when in the water, how she survived, the emotions she experienced while waiting in the hospital and the wait. The grief. The overwhelming grief. Wave was so filled with emotion. I give it 4 out 5 stars. I was completely absorbed in the novel and could not put it down but it lacked in editing. I would recommend it but not for the faint of heart. This is truly an account of woman who lost it all and had to find the strength to continuing living without the ones she loved. 

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