Unlike other kids, my childhood had no love for reading. I was happy roaming in nature, playing cricket or fighting. A somber version of Huckleberry Finn. Off late I have got into the habit of reading Ruskin Bond and have been enjoying it. A few of my friends told me Ruskin books are for toddlers. What I liked about Ruskin Bond’s writing is simplicity. I put him in the same category as Roald Dahl.
I have not been to Nainital, Dehradoon or places Ruskin Bond mentions in his book but makes me feel I am there, walking on the streets or in the wild via him. His writing takes me back to my childhood, makes me think and feel my past.
Some other Indian writers like Khuswant Singh, R K Narayan, and Satyajit Ray follows the same style.
One requires complete idleness to craft a masterpiece. We need to look back to our past, dream and imagine.