Many readers have grown up with Ruskin Bond’s stories. Now in an utterly delightful anthology, he introduces you to the stories he grew up with. Part memoir, part anthology, Love among the Bookshelves is a glimpse into Ruskin’s life through the books he has loved and an introduction to some forgotten classics.
Archives: Books
The Detox Diet
In her new book The Detox Diet, celebrity nutritionist Shonali Sabherwal sheds light on how the root of everything connected to our health lies in the inner ecosystem. She helps unravel the secrets of weight loss, anti-ageing and beauty, and teaches us how to reverse the health issues that arise when bad bacteria outdo the good ones in our system, causing an imbalance. With three fantastic detox diet plans, numerous recipes and an abundance of health tips, this book will help you finally understand the reasons behind many of the problems for which you earlier had no answers. It will now not only get you into the best shape you have ever been in but also help you maintain and sustain a healthier lifestyle.
Secrets
This brilliant new collection of stories by one of India’s best-loved storytellers richly evokes Dehradun of the 1940s; with its quaint cinema halls and crumbling villas; its modest chaat-shops and ubiquitous tongas. But; as young Ruskin—the narrator in these interconnected tales—soon discovers; not all is as it seems in this sleepy town. Behind the tranquil facade; Dehra is home to a cast of colourful characters: from plucky old women to possible murderers.
‘The Canal’ is a joyful tribute to adolescent mischief and adult resolve; in which a group of roguish boys must face the consequences of antagonizing the much-feared Miss Gamla. ‘Over the Wall’ celebrates the resilience and hard-won dignity of a man ravaged by leprosy as he struggles to come to terms with his malady. The dashing young army captain in ‘At Green’s Hotel’ might be the perfect gentleman—or a murderer. And in ‘The Skeleton in the Cupboard’; an old scandal is revived following a chance discovery; leading to wholly unexpected results.
By turns charming and poignant; witty and exhilarating; Secrets is vintage Bond.
The Sensualist
The Sensualist is the story of a man enslaved by his libido and spiralling towards self-destruction. Gripping, erotic, even brutal, the book explores the demons that its protagonist must grapple with before he is able to come to terms with himself. In this fascinating account of the pleasures and perils that attend a young man’s coming of age, Ruskin Bond displays his felicity in exploring the dark aspects of the human psyche. Bold and powerful, The Sensualist is a compelling read.
Confessions Of A Book Lover
Exploring bookshelves in some of the most amazing places-Simla’s Ripon Hospital, Hampstead General Hospital in London, and The Select Bookshop of Mr Rao and Ms Murthy in Bangalore among others-Ruskin Bond opens a window to his earliest encounters with incredible writers and their wonderful writings to introduce you to the stories that played a significant role in moulding his imagination as a full-time writer. Confessions of a Book Lover is a journey into Ruskin’s life through the books he has loved and an introduction to some forgotten classics.
Delhi Is Not Far
The residents of Pipalnagar, a dull and dusty small town, hope to one day leave behind their humdrum lives for the thrills of Delhi. Deep Chand, the barber, dreams of giving the prime minister a haircut; Pitamber wishes to ride an autorickshaw instead of pulling a cycle-rickshaw; and Aziz will be happy with a junk-shop in Chandni Chowk. Sharing their dreams of escape is the narrator Arun, a struggling detective fiction writer. As he waits for inspiration to write a blockbuster, he seeks and discovers love in unusual places-with the young prostitute Kamla, wise beyond her years, and the orphan and epileptic Suraj, surprisingly optimistic despite his difficult circumstances.
In Delhi Is Not Far, one of his most enduring novels, Ruskin Bond sketches a moving portrait of small-town India with characteristic sympathy and quiet wisdom.
Maharani
H.H. is the spoilt, selfish, beautiful widow of the Maharaja of Mastipur. She lives with her dogs and her caretaker, Hans, in an enormous old house in Mussoorie, taking lovers and discarding them, drinking too much and fending off her reckless sons who are waiting hungrily for their inheritance. The seasons come and go, hotels burn down, cinemas shut shop and people leave the hill station never to return, but H.H. remains constant and indomitable. Observing her antics, often with disapproval, is her old friend Ruskin, who can never quite cut himself off from her. Melancholic, wry and full of charm, Maharani is a delightful novella about love, death and friendship.
Scenes From A Writer’s Life
The making of a writer Ruskin Bond’s first full-fledged autobiographical book covers his -formative years,’ till the age of twenty-one. The world of Anglo-India, with all its conflicting pulls, comes alive as he tells his story. His earliest memoirs are bitter-sweet, and relate to Jamnager where he lives till he is six. The happy hours spent in exploring the Ram Vilas Palace grounds and playing with his younger sister Ellen and the palace children are overshadowed by the acrimonious relation between his parents. Their estrangement while he is still a child leaves him with a life-long sense of insecurity. His unhappiness is exacerbated by the untimely death of his father ” his emotional anchor when the author is just ten. Forced to stay with his mother and his stepfather, both of whom are absorbed in their own worlds, he tries to fend off his loneliness through books and the company of a few friends. Left for the most part to himself, the gentle dreamer realizes very early as -a pimply adolescent’ his calling as a writer. His first book, The Room on the Roof, materializes in England, the land of his forefathers, where he is sent to make a career for himself. Despite the unexpected success of his novel, which wins a major British literary prize, the author’s yearning for India is too powerful to let him remain abroad for long. He returns and begins a writing career which has spanned four decades, and earned him a place in the pantheon of great Indian writers.
Hiphop Nature Boy And Other Poems
If a tortoise could run
And losses be won,
And bullies be buttered on toast;
If a song brought a shower
And a gun grew a flower,
This world would be nicer than most!
Beautiful, poignant and funny, Ruskin Bond’s verses for children are a joy to read to yourself on a lazy summer afternoon or to recite in school among friends. For the first time, his poems for children, old and new, come together in this illustrated volume. Nature, love, friends, school, books — all find a place in the poetry of India’s favourite children’s writer.
Thick As Thieves
Somewhere in lifeThere must be someoneTo take your handAnd share the torrid day.Without the touch of friendshipThere is no life, and we must fade away.Discover a hidden pool with three young boys, laugh out loud as a littlemouse makes demands on a lonely writer, follow the mischievous ‘fourfeathers’ as they discover a baby lost in the hills, and witness the bondbetween a tiger and his master. Some stories will make you smile, somewill bring tears to your eyes, some may make your heart skip a beat-butall of them will renew your faith in the power of friendship.