My Kind of Girl

I always saw this book cooling its heels in the rack of my book store. The cover & packaging was classy and so was the price. I always felt that for a 171 page book the price was too much. And then on a rainy day I picked the book sat on red couch of the book store & was hooked to it in no time. Needless to say the book was bought & possessed.

On a cold December night a doctor, a bureaucrat, a contractor & a writer are stuck in the waiting room of Tundla Railway station. Ill at ease & uncomfortable they were worried about how the night will pass when the door of the waiting room opened. A newly wed couple peeped in and retreated after seeing four pairs of prying eyes. Behind them they left a sad room and the men inside started wondering the reason for their departure. All of them had a theory and the one which stood out was

‘They look like a couple in love, they will find a cozy, private spot for themselves, they will enjoy it. They don’t want anything else, they just want privacy.’

This small incident propelled these old guys into talking about love and its intricacies. One thing leads to other and they start sharing their stories, stories of their love, marriage et al.

Each story shows us a different face of love, if in once case it is a synonymous to sacrifice then in other it is blind faith or sometimes it is friendship which is love. There is one common thread between each stories and that is innocence.

The book was originally written in 1951 in Bengali and the stories have the charm of that era. There is certain magic in each story which manages to touch a chord. I keep wondering that if the translation is so beautiful then how beautiful the book would be in its original language.

If I want I can summarize each story but in the process I would kill the magic that I had felt & experienced. I fell in love with each story and am sure so will you. The book has the making of a slow book but it never meanders on that path. It keeps you gripped and enthralled.

It is a sweet little book which endears you with simple language and innocent love stories.

In the present times of fast paced life and faster love life’s the book makes you sit back and yearn for the times when you could not pester your boy friend with unlimited missed calls. All you could do was to wait for him to turn up. It makes you yearn for the times when the best way to pass time as a couple was to go for a walk not mall hopping.

Sigh!!!

A lovely book about love!!!

It can not get better than this.

5 on 5 from me.

Author: Buddhadeva Bose (In Bengali)
Translated to English: Arunava Sinha
Publication: Random House India
Price: 350/-

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