REVIEW OF TALES TOLD AND UNTOLD

During the Bhopal Literature Festival , 12 JANUARY , 2020 
NARRATING   MY AWARD WINNING SHORT STORY 

Review TALES TOLD AND UNTOLD

Book: Tales told and untold

Rituparna Khan

Virasat Publishers, Kolkata

 Price 200 Rs.

Year of publication, 2020

I strongly believe that any person can write a short story, as there is no dearth of stories strewn around us, the vast surroundings teeming with incidents, characters, dialogues, crying for our attention, wanting to see themselves in black and white. .

 Allow me to quote Haruki Murakami here, “A short story I have written long ago would barge into my house in the middle of the night, shake me awake and shout, ‘‘hey, this is no time for sleeping! You can’t forget me, there’s still more to write.” So, stories have the knack of knocking at one’s door at all odd hours, cajoling, coercing and bulldozing a person into becoming a writer, and one  who is already a writer making him \ her hone his \ her skills .

The 26 stories \ anecdotes \ semi- autobiographical pieces in this small and sleek book cater to all tastes – witty, spooky, surreal , sheathing the ordinary in hues of extraordinariness  .Some tickle the funny bone, some send goosebumps up your spine, others make you indulge in self- introspection and philosophizing  .

Stories  like Black chocolate, and Brat to Belle left me with  never ending smiles, The Story Teller intrigued me, I was left tongue tied by the tongue in cheek humor of The tornado was a girl. Girl goes green, an autobiographical nugget, made me salute the tiny girl Roshni and her altruistic spirit and insight, the short and sweet story, Eye Opener has a twist in the tale which left me flummoxed.  

 A couple of stories about two scatter- brained ladies, Miss Mary who forgets her keys [Miss Keys] and is late for office and the other, a painter [Painter’s World] who tucks in her paint brushes in her ebony bun, and starts a frenzied search for them everywhere, appealed to me greatly, their absent- minded acts reminding me of someone whom I know very intimately.
Yes, there are also stories themed around extra sensory perception, which, sent shivers up my spine, making me think deeply about the uncanniness of it all.  A Thing of Beauty is a joy for ever   is a short, scary, spooky story that made me break out in sweat.

It was John Steinbeck who had said, “If there is a magic in story writing, and I am convinced that there is, no one has ever been able to reduce it to a recipe that can be passed from one person to another. The formula seems to lie solely in the aching urge of the writer to convey something he feels important to the reader. If the writer has that urge, he may sometimes, but by no means always find the way to do it.”

 Rituparna Khan had that ‘aching urge’ to convey, what she felt was something important, to the readers ; I must congratulate her for having done a wonderful job of it, and having gifted to the readers a sweet little book, an absolutely beguiling mixture of fact and fiction ,  which can prove to be a great gift to book-lovers. The illustrations done by the author herself complement the book in a very endearing manner, and yes, the cover is mesmerizing.

I have it by my nightstand and re- read my favorite stories before turning in, and lo and behold! I am magically enveloped in soft shadows and a fragrance which lingers on till the wee hours of the morning, rejuvenating me.  

Thanks Rituparna Khan for that aching urge which made you think of the readers and triggered these heart – warming stories.
Here is wishing the writer all the best for all her future literary ventures.