Malgudi Days
R.K. Narayan is known for his ability to create worlds through words. This is just another one that fails to fall short of the high expectations that one is bound expect after having gone through his other works like Swami and Friends, The Dark Room etc.
Narayan creates his characters with the simplest of words, and that is probably why this book appeals to me. The stories seem to be so simple, yet carefully unraveled in Narayan’s slow, and careful way, to create a reading pleasure similar, if not better than any other.
This is basically a collection of short stories, by the end of which one feels as if he knows that place. In these stories, Narayan goes on to describe umpteen characters from this town of Malgudi. The Beggar and the dog, the Thief who swore not to feel sympathy again and many more. The list of characters are just too many, and varied for me to give any comprehensive description. Take my advice and read this book, it will not let you down.
In the introduction, Narayan goes on to describe why he prefers short stories. There are also some details about how he found out about Malgudi. Disclosing them takes the fun out of finding out yourself.
The copy of Malgudi Days I brought was published by Indian Thought publications and priced around Rs. 80. I believe Penguin India also has a similar collection of Narayan’s works, but they are for the ones who can shelve out more money for 24 hours of excellent reading.
Happy reading.