The man behind the myth

A new book brings alive the unknown side of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran

- LAKSHMI SUBRAMANIAN

Journalist M.R. Narayan Swamy’s The Rout of Prabhakaran is an exhaustive chronicle of the LTTE, its leader Velupillai Prabhakaran and Sri Lanka’s long civil war. There have been several books on Prabhakaran and the LTTE, but Swamy's book, which comes out 15 years after the war, is a thorough look at the LTTE leader, analysing his strengths and weaknesses. The author's deep understanding of the civil war and the situation in Sri Lanka comes through in this work.