#52BookClub
Prompt: Final sentence is less than six words long
Serial: 06/52
Book: The Great Train Journey
Author: Ruskin Bond
Pages: 119
Publication: Rupa
Genre: Anthology
So far, May has been a crazy month. In ArtoonsInn , books are being swapped enthusiastically. No sooner do I empty out a portion of my shelf than I see it getting filled up. Not that I am complaining.
A friend of mine named Pradnya Surve gifted me this book, and I couldn’t prevent the huge grin that appeared on my face. Who can say no to Ruskin Bond?
Book:
How old were you when you first travelled by train? Do you have wonderful memories associated with the locomotives? If nostalgia is your friend, this anthology of thirteen stories will take you right down that lane.
Review:
The Great Train Journey is a treasure trove for railway lovers. It has the stamp of Bond all over it. Laced with simplicity and rooted in the rural life of India, the stories will brighten up a gloomy day. They bring to the forefront unsung heroes like watchmen, whose task is to check the tunnel for any hindrances before they give the green signal to the engine drivers. Even in cases where there are malicious co-passengers involved, simpletons like Daya Ram still believe in goodness and never hesitate to talk to complete strangers. After all, a train journey is incomplete if you haven’t made new friends.
As a fan of humour, I loved ‘Belting Around Mumbai’. Only Ruskin Bond can get away with writing about lit fests in such a charmingly honest manner. My second favourite was ‘Snake Trouble’, where an eccentric old man keeps a python, in addition to a parrot and a monkey. The escapades of the humans and the animals kept me entertained throughout.
Snippets:
Gulzar read from Ghalib, Tom Alter read from Gulzar, Mandira Bedi read from Nandita Puri, and everyone read madly from each other, and I sat quietly in a corner to keep my belt out of further entanglements.
The python, who had been buried beneath all the guavas, chose this moment to wake up and stand straight up to a height of several feet. Guavas tumbled all over the place. The major uttered an oath and dashed indoors.
The longest story was ‘Time Stops at Shamli’. True to its name, time stood still as I travelled with the narrator to a lonely place, only to feel sorry for his lost love. Yet, hope lingers, just like the protagonist.
Verdict:
It took me less than an hour to complete the book. When I turned to the last page, I reminisced about the journeys in a sleeper class Coromandel Express. A tiny chuckle escaped my lips as my mind wandered to the innocent me of the 80s, who looked forward to wolfing down oily puris and gulping bottles of water filled in from the countless taps on the platforms.
Some books are worth cherishing. This is one of them. What is life without the trains?
