Title: My Favourite Nature Stories
Author: Ruskin Bond
Price: INR 195
Genre: Non-Fiction
ISBN: 978-81-291-3768-5
The sure worst part of the book was that it eventually got
over. Each word devoured and each page gulped. I am still in denial and start
re-reading every now and then, and yes, coming back to it is one of the best
feelings ever.
Brought out by Rupa Publications on the occasion of the
author’s 82nd birthday, this wonder of a book is a beauteous
collection of 21 nature and daily life inspired pieces of prose by Ruskin Bond.
To explicate why I refer to it as wonder of book, may I point that it had I, a
self-proclaimed, hard hearted detractor of non-fiction genres, loving each of
its stories and longing for more… and yet more.
Each of the stories is short, more like a compilation of
penned down thoughts at different points in time during the author’s long
association with the mountains and of brief periods away from them. The stories
are straight from the heart pieces and the narrative is so real that as one
reads them, one can totally imagine oneself as actually being in the place and
situation described.
From trees to insects to a walnut thief grandmother to the
ancient wells of old Delhi to birds that sang and flowers that bloomed and snakes
that didn’t kill to what humans are doing to the mountains to the tube train
journey that could remind the author of mountain bears making away with ripe pumpkins,
the book takes the reader though a variety of topics and places. And suddenly,
somewhere in between the text, when you least expect, a funny line or two crops
up. For instance, in the context of sweltering heat of the dusty lanes of Old
Delhi, the reader gets to sample this:
“Shopkeepers
nod drowsily beneath whirring ceiling fans. The pavement barber has taken his
customer into the shelter of an awning. A fortune teller has decided there is
nothing to predict and has fallen asleep under the same awning.”
There are some important lessons for us humans as well, case
in point:
“While
the green-backs took their plunge, the red-heads waited patiently on the moss
covered rocks. I thought they showed more discipline than a crowd of people at
a city water-tap.”
And some food for thought, like:
“For
every time I see the sky, I am aware of belonging to the universe rather than
to just one corner of the earth.”
The book also talks of how simple things like sweeping the
verandah or meeting the river or the sound of some insects could be of importance
and a source of happiness.
All in all, a very satisfying experience reading the book. A
must read for all who’ve been to the mountains and cherish the calm inspired mountain
life.
Although, I would request the publishers to get the book
proofread as there are a few errors here and there, I would like to thank them
for their praiseworthy endeavour in bringing out this book.
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