A World of Books: Martin Wickramasinghe in Colombo

Almost immediately, the 16-year-old Martin Wickramasinghe was thrown into an unfamiliar environment.

- UDITHA DEVAPRIYA

When he arrived, Colombo was being rocked by an outpouring of anger and hostility. A group of carters had begun a protest against municipal laws and regulations, and they had virtually brought the city to a standstill."[It was the first occasion during which a labour dispute in Ceylon reflected... the strong feeling of discontent against the government."

Kumari Jayawardena, The Labour Movement in Ceylon

In 1907, a year after Wickramasinghe arrived in Colombo, Twentieth Century Impressions of Ceylon was published. Edited by Arnold Wright, the book describes in great detail the roads, the areas, and the institutions in Colombo, the world that Wickramasinghe was now part of. The Fort or Pettah area, where he worked, was the site of numerous commercial houses and administrative buildings. This was one of the most densely populated areas of the city, if not country, "inhabited almost entirely by 'natives'." Not far from Pettah lay the Cinnamon Gardens, which in the early 20th century had transformed into the most fashionable suburb in the city, housing the residences of its most affluent elites.

It was against this setting that Wickramasinghe began reading as many books as he could. Lacking formal education, he made the most of what he had by subscribing to foreign magazines, attending public discussions, and learning to write.

We have two sources for the books he read at this point in his life. The first are his memoirs, Upan Da Sita. The second is the bibliography of his collection at the National Library. While the latter has been well catalogued and offers a vivid glimpse into the titles, authors, and genres he was immersing himself in, Wickramasinghe's recollections give us a clearer picture of the books that caught him and transfixed him in his first few years in the city.