This gave me a bit of trouble as whenever I like something, I am so tremendously enthusiastic about it that (at least in my mind) it ceases to be underrated. But if I HAVE to choose, it'll probably be Moyna-Shalikh by Leela Majumdar.
Till date, Leela Majumdar remains one of my favourite authors. People tend to box her neatly in the children's author category, but I refuse to accept it. For example, every time I read Tong Ling, I find something new to think about and it took me a long time to figure out the underlying theme of intense loneliness that runs through the book. However, as I was saying, back to Moyna-Shalikh. It remains a particular favourite because as a child I have fantasized about running away from home at least twenty thousand times. I still do, in fact. Whenever people discuss Leela Majumdar, they get a nostalgic glint in their eyes and gush about Holde Pakhir Palok or Podi Pishir Bormibaksho and such like, which makes me even fonder of Moyna Shalikh. Yes, I've always had a soft spot for overlooked geniuses. I think everyone should read the book. Preferably on a hot summer afternoon when they have nothing else to do. The language is beautiful. The plot is happy-making. The descriptions of the hills are breathtaking. And the only comparable thing I can think of is cool watermelon on summer days - it soothes the mind so. Also, it has my favourite kind of central characters - two little girls!
p.s. I always thought that I had read far too many English books and not enough Bengali ones. But this tag makes me realize that perhaps those few Bengali books made a far greater impact on me than the numerous English ones. Rokter taan and all that I suppose. Also, the only Leela Majumdar book covers I can find online are (predictably) Holde Pakhir Palok and Podipishir Bormi Baksho. So (instead of the customary book cover), here's a picture of the author herself to make everyone happy.
p.p.s. I went through my last posts and GOOD LORD! THE SPELLING MISTAKES AND GRAMMATICAL ERRORS! The posts show that I wrote them in a hurry. I shall nitpick and edit them, I'll have to wait for the weekend to do that. Ah well.
No comments:
Post a Comment