Sen's Bucket

Adarsha Hindu Hotel by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhay There was once a time, when eating at eateries was very different from today; the codes of service and management were strongly different from current dispensation. This holds true for the characters too, even though racism was also more clearly present in everyday life. Politics at work place existed even then; mismanagement and employee favoritism was known. Humane people were perhaps more common. These are some of the overarches that comes strongly when delving into the world of Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhay's Adarsha Hindu Hotel, set in the city of Ranaghat in pre-partition Bengal. The book is obviously about more things, but these remain some of the broader underlings of this Bengali novel. 

Small Towns Big Stories by Ruskin Bond An existence and a life-long romantic relationship, with the smaller towns and cities of northern India's hilly areas, Ruskin Bond excelled at documenting life in these places. So much so, even if one may not have any plans to alias with cities like Shamli or Deoli, knowing the characters in these heartland areas becomes far more vivid and true, with Ruskin's style of writing. There could well be those who don't perhaps, even think of Ruskin's works to be anything serious, but it can be said with great moral conviction that, there is every bit the chance, their views change. In a world of conflict of various shades, it makes for great read to delve into lives whose shades are more realistic, vivid, perhaps romantic in ways, sketched on the literary canvas by a person, who knows how to do it best. Great read, Rusty!