As I mentioned in an earlier post, I think a book of poetry is quite enjoyable to read, and bit harder to review. This book is a favorite not just because of the poetry but also because of the author. Ruskin Bond is one of my favorite storytellers, and I’ve come so close to meeting him in person on a couple of occasions as well. To see that he had a book of verse was surprising as well as pleasing. It was an instinctive buy that turned out right.
Poetry can be simple. Quite often, people seem to think poetry requires big words, meter, rhyme, structure. Poetry could have all that, but to me, poetry is what liberates a thought in a sense of flow from the heart to the medium on which the poet expresses it. It can be powerful in that simplicity too. Ruskin Bond’s verse, like his storytelling, is without airs. It looks at life, it observes, it expresses, and leaves the reader to contemplate.
Unpretensive simplicity…
In its unpretensive manner, the poems in the book are quite refreshing. It is inspiring and urges me to write as well. There are many poems in the book. I liked the poem about the snail the most, as it observes a journey that continues patiently. The book’s back cover has a poem too, one of my all time favorites, that expresses the concept of dependency that we might not be aware exists. And it was lovely to see some haiku in the book too.
Wit and magic…
There is wit in the verse at times, and there is magic more often than not that leaves me mesmerized. As with every poetry collection, there are few poems that did not quite appeal to me, but overall, it is a collection I’d love to reread and recommend.
This is the 10th year of the #AtoZChallenge and my tenth year attempting it. My theme this year is Books – Read and Loved. As evident by the theme, I am going to write on books I’ve read and loved.
Liked this? Read some of my earlier posts written about Books.
Vinay Leo R.
20. 04. 2019
Vinay Leo R.
Poetry & writing are to me, a breath of fresh air in a life that is sometimes covered by the smoke of sorrow or self doubt. They also become the sweets I share to celebrate when life offers me a reason to. But most of all, they are to me, my life. For each word I write is a piece of my heart, a thought that just had to find its way into the world.