A Remembrance of Death follows a young man navigating loss, physical limitations, and the British Empire’s complex legacy in the aftermath of WWI. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

I wanted to write a story where the main protagonist is not an obvious hero. He is kind, courteous, and principled; he will not lie and understands right and wrong. At the outset, he is an observer of the events around him. He watches as his friend is thrown into a river and is helpless as his marriage falls apart. At the lowest point in his life, he goes to Nuremberg rather than stay with his wife because this is required of him. After Nuremberg, he must make a choice between loyalty to his country or exposing the truth. My inspiration for this story came about because I believe there is a growing trend for our news and history to be manipulated and that the truth is fundamentally important, no matter how uncomfortable it may be.

How did your research into historical events like the Mau Mau uprising and the Nuremberg Trials shape the narrative?

The two events are closely linked for the purposes of the story. My main protagonist, Basil Drewe, is shocked when confronted with the horrors of Dacau and Nazi atrocities and helps with the prosecution of Nazi War Criminals. Nine years later he must look into the Mau Mau uprising, where he learns that the British have closed their eyes to the torture of detainees and that nearly a million natives of the Kikuyu tribe have been resettled forcibly. Until this point in the novel Basil has mainly been a passive observer and now must make a choice as to whether to tow the British establishment line or not. From this point in the narrative Basil changes as does his life, particularly the trajectory of his relationship with his wife.

Laxman Choudhury is a memorable character. What motivated you to include his perspective and cultural experiences?

I was motivated to include Laxman’s perspective and cultural experiences to give a different perspective to the novel. Throughout the novel, there are instances of how foreigners, who are culturally different, are treated. For example, the Chinese workmen who built the railway across America, ‘The Dunera’ boys who were transported to Australia, the Kikuyu who were forced into unsanitary villages, and the detention and killing of Jews during WWII. Laxman Choudhury’s experiences show what it is like to be a foreigner in a time when a country does not respect someone else’s culture. He then returns to India where the tensions between the Hindu and Muslim communities are at breaking point. While he sees the faults of the British, he struggles to see what it is like being a Muslim in a Hindu-dominated society.

If readers take away one lesson or emotion from A Remembrance of Death, what do you hope it will be?​

To learn from your mistakes and not to repeat them.

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