Book Review: White Clouds, Green Mountains by Ruskin Bond

Introduction

ISBN: 978-8129142337
Genre: Fiction / Anthologies
Publishers: Rupa
Price: Rs.195/- (I got this book from the publisher for a review)

Time passes and yet it doesn’t pass; people come and go, the mountains remain. Mountains are permanent things. They are stubborn, they refuse to move…no matter how hard they try, humans cannot actually get rid of the mountains. That’s what I like about them; they are here to stay. Mountains—snow-capped, green and filled with stories. For decades, Ruskin Bond has lived among them and his writings abound in descriptions of these hills—of life as it is lived here, of animals and birds who sometimes even wander into his room, of the many interesting and eccentric characters who he has met here. From having his roof fly off in a freak storm to becoming the ‘writer on the hill’, Bond has seen it all. Funny, elegiac and filled with beautiful descriptions of people, animals and places, this collection is for every mountain and nature lover.

Behind the book

Source: Amazon.in

About the Author

Ruskin Bond has been writing for over sixty years and now has over 120 titles in print—novels, collections of short stories, poetry, essays, anthologies and books for children. His first novel, The Room on the Roof, received the prestigious John Llewellyn Rhys Award in 1957. He has also received the Padma Shri (1999), the Padma Bhushan (2014) and two awards from Sahitya Akademi—one for his short stories and another for his writings for children. In 2012, the Delhi government gave him its Lifetime Achievement Award.

Born in 1934, Ruskin Bond grew up in Jamnagar, Shimla, New Delhi and Dehradun. Apart from three years in the UK, he has spent all his life in India and now lives in Mussoorie with his adopted family.

Me thinks

If like me you are a mountain lover yearning to be back at any given opportunity then this book is for you. As the name suggests this book is a collection of stories written revolving around the mountains and their beauty.

Ruskin Bond has the magical ability to make any place come alive in his words. After R K Narayan if there is someone whose writing can transport me back to childhood it is this man. The innocence, the beauty and the magic of writing straight from the heart- his work is a treat to the readers.

In this book he will not only make you travel through the mountains along with him but also make you smile, laugh with gay abandon, forgetting all your worries and remind you that the real beauty of life lies in the smallest of things around us which we ignore most of the times. His stories have that strength where he talks about things which are otherwise mundane but when he draws your notice to it you cannot help but wonder how on earth did you manage to ignore it till now.

Strongly recommended for all nature lovers and Ruskin Bond lovers (Though I don't think there are any one other than these who exist in this world :D ) This book is a perfect companion on a travel or that perfect gift you should give to your loved ones because it will spread some smiles.

Foodie Verdict

This book is like Mexican Corn Fritters - crispy, delicious, fills your heart but will never fill your stomach (read: mind) because it will never be enough :)

Source: Scratching Canvas

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