Arghadipa Chakraborty

“You don’t have to lie if you know how to withhold the truth”.

Book:- The Room on the Roof

Author:- Ruskin Bond

No. Of pages:- 202

Genre:- Fiction

“The Room on the Roof” is a famous fiction written by Ruskin Bond, the winner of The John LLEWELLYN RHYS PRIZE. In this story, we are going to witness how some strangers can change our flow of life towards 360° reverse through Rusty, the protagonist of the story.

About the Author:-

Ruskin Bond was born on 19th May,1934 in Kasauli, Himachal Pradesh. He belongs to Aubery Bond and Edith Clarke and now lives with his adopted family carrying the blending of happiness and sadness of 86 years. He has obtained Sahitya Akademi Award in 1993, Padma Shri in 1999, Padma Bhushan in 2014.

He wrote his first novel “The Room on the Roof” when he was just seventeen and never corrected it because this was written from the perspective of a teenage boy and he thought that it would present his protagonist in a perfect way.

His other notable works are-

. Time Stops at Shamli”

.“Delhi is not Far”

.“The Blue Umbrella”

.“The Hidden Pool”

.“The Night Train at Deoli” etc.

Why I Picked up this Book?

“The world keeps on changing, but there is always something, somewhere,that remains the same.”

I can relate this line with my feeling for Ruskin Bond because my love and respect for Bond has never been changed. “The Room on the Roof” is his first novel which he wrote only at the age of seventeen reflecting his own life in Dehra in it and this novel has brought THE JOHN LLEWELLYN RHYS PRIZE.

Being a great Bond fan, I can’t avoid any creation of him and specifically that one which is his first novel. His capacity of describing situations with simple yet vivid language, attracts me very much.

Theme:-

“The Room on the Roof” is a novel that tells the story of Rusty, a seventeen years old Anglo-Indian boy and his transformation from claustrophobic to a free spirit.

After the demise of his parents, Rusty used to live with his horrible & dominating guardian Mr. Harrison in the outskirts of Dehra. Strict as he was, he kept Rusty in the restriction not to soak into the vibes of Indian community. That’s why Rusty’s curiosity about distant people starts to grow. One day, when Rusty was returning home, an unknown boy named Somi wished to give him a lift due to the drizzle and made Rusty familiar to Ranbir and Suri. Finding something interesting in them, Rusty used to go to the chat shop of the bazar in order to meet them, enjoyed the festival of colours with Ranbir and his gang and shoved off his guardian’s house after being severely tortured by him. Somi found a job for Rusty and that is to teach English to Kishen who is the son of Mr. Kapoor and Meena to secure the orphan’s life. Later, Rusty witnessed his love in Meena who is exceptionally beautiful and twenty years younger than Mr. Kapoor and probably was not happy with him as the lady responded to Rusty’s love. The bliss of his life didn’t last long as Meena passed away while traveling to Delhi and Kishen was taken to Haridwar by his aunt. Rusty’s friends were also not in Dehra & the hopeless boy identified life anew in the room on the roof. He decided that he would meet Kishen for the last time before going to England. Reaching there, he faced a heart breaking truth about Mr. Kapoor and Kishen. At last, Rusty realized that he & Kishen were made for each other and decided to settle with him withdrawing his plan for England.

What I Liked in this Book?

• The book is unique for not only the descriptions and philosophies of childhood, dreams, teenage, love, friendship, diverse cultures but for also it is the story of ‘adolescence written by an adolescent’.
• The lesson I have learnt through this novel is that man should follow his instincts always and they must not be forced to obey others.
• The best message given by the author is that how some strangers become part of our lives and change our lives by showing a little love and warmth.

You can also read-

The Ruskin Bond stories I Have Read Last Month

The story is simple yet amazingly expresses the emotions of friendship, hope, pain and love. Dehra’s streets, its food, bazar, houses and hills- everything is described so beautifully that you will feel that you are there with them.

So, for what you are waiting? Start reading now!📗