What better way to celebrate the birthday of the grand old man of storytelling than to get his youngest readers together and listen to tales from his latest book? Storyteller Bookstore, Kolkata, hosted a birthday party for Ruskin Bond on May 19, with a book-reading session from The Golden Years (HarperCollins India)
‘The Golden Years’ by Ruskin Bond, published by HarperCollins India, was launched at Storyteller Bookstore, Kolkata, on May 19
The bookstore buzzed with young Bond aficionados as author Madhurima Vidyarthi took them on a journey into Bond’s world of words. She read out the chapter Why Stop? from the author’s latest book, which is a reflection on his long and remarkable writing career. Like his other works, the stories in this book flow effortlessly as a mutual communication between the author and his readers. He speaks about how the age 60 is considered a threshold in a person’s life — beyond it lies a life of enforced inactivity and seclusion. But “for writers, the nice thing about growing old is that it gives us more to write about”, begins the first chapter of Bond’s book. It gives one time to pause and reflect on life and savour many long-forgotten moments. The sixties that fill many with apprehension are not about receding into oneself.
Author and doctor Madhurima Vidyarthi reading out a story from Bond’s new book
The pen of a writer never runs out of ink, as Bond believes — “If you have reached the pinnacle of your writing career, why stop? And if you haven’t achieved what you set out to, why give up?” The title of the book is reflective of the contentment Bond derives from his life as he observes people and the beautiful landscape of the Himalayas, takes pleasure in good food and regular walks, and weaves everything together into stories that readers across age, space and time relish. This book is an exhortation to all to learn to experience the joys in the smallest of things and listen to what the self desires.
An author and a fan
A self-declared fan, Vidyarthi said Ruskin Bond was the first Indian writer in English that she read. “What I love about him ever since my early initiation into his writings is the simplicity and readability of his works. He never dumbed down anything for children. He is English by parentage but chose to make India his home, and how beautifully so.”
As an author herself, Vidyarthi articulated how she resonates with Bond’s idea of writing as communion with the self.
“There is a certain joy in writing, in putting words down on paper and creating a story, or a poem, or a novel, or even a memoir. And if no one else enjoys what you have composed, never mind. You have done it for yourself and your own pleasure,” muses Bond in The Golden Years.
A space for children
Mayura Misra, the owner of Storyteller Bookstore, Kolkata, considers it her responsibility to bring good books to children
One of the main thoughts behind this event was to initiate children into the act of reading, if they aren’t already, and engage them in an interactive conversation. Children’s author Swati Kheria spoke about the rewarding experience that writing for children entails. Mayura Misra, the owner of the Storyteller Bookstore, briefly recorded the journey of her bookshop that has grown into an enriching space for children over the years — “A couple of decades back, when there was no children’s bookstore in Kolkata, I started with only one table in a rented space. The space grew, and so did the number of books on the shelves. Now, Storyteller Bookstore houses different books that pique many children’s interests. We organise various events and literature festivals in schools. Our job is to curate books and get children back into the habit of reading.”
Little fans
Srinjoy Moulick of Dolna Day School was excited to recite two of Bond’s poems
In keeping with the spirit of this bookstore, children in attendance at the event were encouraged to share their experience of reading Bond. Srinjoy Moulick, a student of Class 3 in Dolna Day School, recited two of Bond’s poems — Listen and The Trees. Soham Dana, who studies in Class 8 in Maharishi Vidyamandir, discussed the pleasure he gets upon reading Bond’s descriptive prose that brings to life fictional settings. A brief quiz on Bond’s life and works held the young minds’ attention. Though not in person, Bond was very much there in spirit at the celebration of his 89th birth anniversary in Storyteller Bookstore, and the evening was rounded off with cutting Bond’s birthday cake and wishing him many more years of life and writing.
