There were so many great elements in this book--exotic setting, interesting characters, dramatic events, poetic language (although the sections in verse seemed sort of, well, bad)--and yet somehow I could never get excited about it. Maybe something about the lack of...dramatic arc in the present narrative? I don't know. Maybe it was great. Maybe it was my fault. I just couldn't dance to it.

There is something very magical about the way that Ondaatje writes. It really draws you in, blurring the lines between what is real and what you know must have some ties to fiction.

I was very easily caught up in Ondaatje's world which made me love this book even more. There is a beautiful poetry to his writing as well, which I could read for days and days. I honestly can't fault it.

This was an absolute pleasure to read!

Reread it while in Sri Lanka and appreciated it much more; it’s an amazing country that felt hard to appreciate without witnessing it firsthand

Michael Ondaatje conta a história da sua família a partir de duas viagens feitas ao Sri Lanka de onde saira aos 11 anos. Acompanhado pela irmã, vai falando com tias e amigos da família, visitando as casas e propriedades onde moraram, redescobrindo fotografias e memórias familiares do tempo dos avós e de quando os pais se conheceram. A sua árvore genealógica tem várias personagens mirambolantes e com imensas histórias para contar. Mas o livro é também uma carta de amor ao Ceilão, a própria ilha do Sri Lanka, revisitada minuciosamente, percorrida de lés a lés, para trás e para a frente no tempo. Mais um livro recomendado pela Ann Patchett, que continua a não desiludir.

Bought the book in Sri Lanka and finished it soon after my return. A really lovely read, special for me as I had just visited a number of the places described, and recognize elements of the atmosphere of Ceylon, even if my trip to Sri Lanka was many years later.

The book is multiple things in one: a travelogue describing the “Burgher” class (separate from the British colonial class) mostly in the prewar period. It is also a sort of an autobiography of Michael Ondaatje, although most takes place before his own birth (1943). Towards the end there more focus on the emotional story about his father and his decline (alcoholism) and eventual passing. The book ends with his death which is telling. The beginning years in contrast are very gay, full of (eccentric) humor, where you are quickly absorbed in the story by the masterful writing of Ondaatje.

Loved this (short) book and have recommended it to several of my friends!

THE ONDATAAJES

A trip to the native country of Sri Lanka in which the traveler goes back in time to the days of childhood trying to recreate that very atmosphere.

However, the book is not confined to that only. It also describes Sri Lanka to the foreign reader, its landscapes, people, traditions, dishes, even the language as a system of writing.

The story of the Ondataajes could be the story of any Ceylonese family, since there seems to be no difference between their way of living and that of, say, their neighbors.

Therefore, while the narrator tries to make sense of his own origins by listening to the most interesting stories of the most outstanding members of his own family, the reader is swept into an exotic world, full of wild animals, heat, strange behavior, traditions and habits.

Just the facts, ma'am? Or...perhaps not.

I think what you make of this book depends, in large part, what expectations you have when you start it. It's not a biography - it's part family recollections, part travel memoir. It's not beginning-to-end - it's a collection of stories, which, Ondaatje points out, are inevitably coloured by time, perspective and the desired effects on the teller's audience. It's lyrical and teasing. The prose is lovely, as you'd expect from Ondaatje. It's definitely a difficult book to categorise, but it is an entertaining read.

3.5*

Ondaatje is a jester, a magician, his writing conjures every trick in the book. Literally. Reading 'Running in the Family' is like swimming in an ocean where currents of reality meet currents of fiction. As someone whose extended family encountered some of the very real harsh events that Ondaatje's family experienced I found the book reassuring. From the clever title to the last page, Ondaatje explores missed chances and natural events, toxic behaviour and taudry aspects of society. The journey of family can bring us to the brink, nearly tip us over and yet somehow we are saved or perhaps we save ourselves.
This is a family who endured strange times. If those who endure strange times can be as creative as Ondaatje there is hope indeed.

memoir in cui michael ondaatje racconta non solo il ritorno nel suo paese natale, lo sri lanka, ma anche la storia della sua eccentrica famiglia. molto interessante nel narrare la vita quotidiana dell'alta borghesia all'inizio del 900 (che non aveva nulla da invidiare alle follie europee- tra balli, sbornie, follie, innamoramenti e feste fino all'alba) e commovente nel tracciare il ritratto di un padre mai compreso eppure amato. davvero bello.

I enjoyed the way Ondaatje writes his prose poetically. I love that he follows tangents in this memoir. That he observes the moments of space and silence in a fresh way. The poems written by the protesters that were later discovered and documented were incredible.

4.5 Brilliantly controlled, from the humour of the beginning to the search for making sense of meaning at the end.

Michael Ondaatje offers an inside look at his ancestors from the 1600 century to 1983, when he published this memoir. I started reading his writing when we traveled to Canada where he has made his home for many years. His writes an interesting history of the country of Sir Lanka when it was known as Ceylon.