Skip to main content

Review: The Teller of Tales by Bhaskar Ghose.


Book: The Teller of Tales

Author: Bhaskar Ghose

Pages: 277

Read On: Paperback

How Long It Took Me To Read: 2 days

Plot Summary: Civil servant-turned-schoolteacher Arunava Varman is secretive and reticent. But he turns into an inspired teller of tales after a couple of drinks, especially in the company of his friend, Tapan. Arunava’s bizarre stories – involving friends, family and colleagues – add a dash of excitement and intrigue to Tapan’s mundane life of a bureaucrat. But over the years, as Tapan gets to know Arunava better, he starts discovering disturbing holes in these tales.

Elegant, wistful and full of surprises, this exquisitely crafted first novel combines the suspense of a thriller with the tender charm of a love story.

General Thoughts: I bought this book without too much of a thought. I had heard of this book in magazines and papers around the time this book out in 2012. I liked the premise of this book. two friends chatting over a couple of drinks and telling stories. It reminded me of my dad and his friends. 

Plus the cover art is kinda pretty too. 

When this book arrived in the mail, my dad saw it and recognized the author. My dad knows of the author, who was posted in my hometown. My hometown and it's surrounding area are frequently mentioned in this book and I loved reading about places so familiar to me. 

Things I Liked: 

1. I loved the friendship depicted in this book. The bonds formed over the early years of Government service when friends and family are far away, these two young men find each other and develop a close bond. And I loved how the bond grows stronger over the years. I also liked how typical this friendship was of friendships of men. They don't meet all the time, once a couple of months and later years go by before they meet again. I loved how real and genuine this friendship read. 

2. I loved the stories Arunava tells Tapan. It was like being in the room with them and hearing the stories in person. Some of the stories were really funny and there was even a ghost story! A good range of tales! 

3. I loved Arunava's character. He was a mystery and an enigma. Really interesting. I kept turning pages, hoping to figure out the truth about his life. 

4. The lying, the blatant lies that Arunava tells Tapan were very curious. There are people who like embellishing truths, who lie to make themselves seem interesting. I have known people in my life who lie at the drop of a hat and no real good reason. It was enjoyable reading about a person like that in fiction. 

5. The best thing however was the mentions of North Bengal and it's tiny towns. My corner of the world. It made me miss home! 

Things I Didn't Like: 

1. The middle portion was the book was slow and I was rapidly losing interest. The only reason I kept reading was my interest in Arunava and his back story.

2. I never warmed up to Tapan. 

3. There is a love-story thrown in the very end and I just wasn't invested in this aspect of the book at all. 

4. The reason for Arunava being the way he was...was a little silly. Not unbelievable or anything...just a little silly. 

Rating" 3/5 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Review: The Magic of the Lost Temple by Sudha Murthy.

Book: The Magic of the Lost Temple Author: Sudha Murthy Pages: 163 Read On: Paperback How Long it took Me To Read: 1 day Plot Summary:   City girl Nooni is surprised at the pace of life in her grandparents' village in Karnataka. But she quickly gets used to the gentle routine there and involves herself in a flurry of activities, including papad making, organizing picnics and learning to ride a cycle, with her new-found friends. Things get exciting when Nooni stumbles upon an ancient fabled stepwell right in the middle of a forest.Join the intrepid Nooni on an adventure of a lifetime in this much-awaited book by Sudha Murty that is heart-warming, charming and absolutely unputdownable. General Thoughts: Ah! A happy little Children's Book! I wanted it the minute I spotted it in the bookshop. And I started reading it pretty much immediately. :)  I read it after reading a beyond dull and boring and soulless book. This book just cured my bookish blues. I l

Book Review: The Room on the Roof by Ruskin Bond.

Some snippets of the stunning art inside the book!  Book: The Room on the Roof Author: Ruskin Bond Illustrator: Ahlawat Gunjan Pages: 171 Read On: Hardback How Long It Took Me To Read: 3 days or so. Plot Summary:   Rusty, a sixteen-year-old Anglo-Indian boy, is orphaned and has to live with his English guardian in the claustrophobic European part in Dehra Dun. Unhappy with the strict ways of his guardian, Rusty runs away from home to live with his Indian friends. Plunging for the first time into the dream-bright world of the bazaar, Hindu festivals and other aspects of Indian life, Rusty is enchanted … and is lost forever to the prim proprieties of the European community.  General Thoughts: This book is super special. Not only this 60th anniversary edition an absolute beauty. This is also a signed copy I picked up from Mussoorie when I was in Landour earlier in the year. This is perhaps one of Ruskin Bond's most well kn

Review: Grandma's Bag of Stories by Sudha Murthy.

Book: Grandma's Bag of Stories Author: Sudha Murthy Pages: 176 Read On: Paperback How Long It Took Me Read: 2 hours Plot Summary:   When Grandma opens her bag of stories, everyone gathers Around. Who can resist a good story, especially when it’s being told by Grandma? From her bag emerges tales of kings and cheats, monkeys and mice, bears and gods. Here comes the bear who ate some really bad dessert and got very angry; a lazy man who would not put out a fire till it reached his beard; a princess who got turned into an onion; a queen who discovered silk, and many more weird and wonderful people and animals. Grandma tells the stories over long summer days and nights, as seven children enjoy life in her little town. The stories entertain, educate and provide hours of enjoyment to them. So come, why don’t you too join in the fun? General Thoughts: I've read quite a few Sudha Murthy books this year and really enjoyed them. I find them soothing, simple a