Book Review

BIBLIOGRAPHIC DETAILS:

NAME OF BOOK: Strangers in the night, two novellas

NAME OF THE AUTHOR: Ruskin Bond

NAME OF THE PUBLISHER: Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd.

PLACE OF THE PUBLICATION: New Delhi 

YEAR OF THE PUBLICATION: 1996

PRICE OF THE BOOK: Rs. 175

TOTAL NO. OF PAGES: 143

LANGUAGE: English

ACCESSION NUMBER: 893

LIBRARY LOCATION: Shelf 5/3

ABOUT THE AUTHOR (50-100 WORDS)

Ruskin Bond, a writer with British roots, was born on May 19, 1934, in Kasauli, located in Himachal Pradesh, India. He is renowned for his stories set in the hills and mountains of India, particularly focusing on the areas of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Bond has authored more than a hundred works, including novels, essays, and short story collections. Among his most well-known books are “The Blue Umbrella,” “A Flight of Pigeons,” “A Handful of Nuts,” and “The Room on the Roof.” His contributions to literature have been recognized with several prestigious awards from the Indian government, such as the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan.

SUMMARY OF THE BOOK (200-300 WORDS)

This book consists of two novellas written by the great Indian author Ruskin Bond. The first one, “A Handful of Nuts”, is about a 21-year old young man living in a small town of India who is trying to establish himself as a writer. Although he a true wordsmith he is distracted a lot by the people in his life. And so he is able to generate an income which is just enough to keep him alive. This is probably an semi-autobiographical write-up. The reader will surely recollect his or her own adolescence. The narrative is sometimes funny and sometimes sad. The story ends abruptly, but a conclusion is somehow reached.

“The Sensualist”, the second novella, is about a narrator who is trying to come to grip with his demons. He is a person who is ruled by his carnal desires. This again will make the reader reminisce about their own growing-up years.

READER PERSPECTIVE ABOUT THE BOOK (30-50 WORDS)

The books is an easy read, like every other Ruskin Bond book. But is not suitable for a young reader below 14 years.

FORMATING STYLE OF THE BOOK AND LITERATURE CONSTITUTION (30-50) WORDS

Other than the cover of the book there are no illustrations. The font used is large enough to read the text comfortably, even in a moving bus or train. The language used is simple and easy to understand,

RECOMMENDATION OF BOOK (30-50 WORDS)

The book is recommended for readers above the age of 14 who especially like the writing style of Ruskin Bond.

ENHANCING THE VALUE OF THE BOOK

I would give this book three stars.

PURPOSE OF BOOK REVIEW (30-50)

Purpose of this review is to make other know about this book.