Kuanna’s story was written based on the historical character Kuwēni (also known as Kuanna) linked to the legends connected to the origin of Sinhalese people in Sri Lanka. In the established lore, Kuanna gets killed by her angry tribe for marrying the outlawed Prince Wijeya from India, who brings destruction to their people. The author penned this story with the view that perhaps it wasn’t Kuanna who should have been killed; perhaps it was Wijeya who should have faded from the picture, leaving Kuanna to reconcile with herself and her roots. This fictitious story was imagined as Kuanna’s life after Wijeya where she reclaims her strength in a permanent place as an outsider.
✺ This story was presented as a spoken story because it’s closer to oral storytelling—the oldest form of sharing stories. It’s stories in their purest form.
✺ This is a sample of this spoken story for pre-ordering. The complete spoken story will be emailed within 7 days of placing your pre-order.
✺ This sample reads; “Kuanna noticed the sixth body for the week being taken to the jungle in a funeral parade. A group of nine to ten followed the four carrying the corpse wrapped in cloth, singing their funeral song. Six deaths in a week; this was unusual. She resisted the urge to speak to the funeral party. After all, her tribe disowned her nine years ago for bringing misfortune to the village with the warring man she chose to love. She vowed never to return to the people who killed him."