This post is about the book rack, but yes I will tackle the issues of the day as well. But that's a tad trivial at present. The books REALLY MATTER!
So while it poured cats and dogs outside, and my mum warned me against getting wet, lest i catch a dreadful cold, I braved the elements (it's been raining quite heavily all of a sudden in bombay!), and made my way, towards a quaint yellow bookstore, under the flyover, in the southern part of the city of dreams, to immerse myself, in the aroma of pages, the hubbub of voices, and the joy of an open book, which rightly is the best way to travel.
"There's nothing better, on a rainy day, to get a cup of coffee, pick up a book, and immerse yourself in that world, the world of the pages, of paragraphs, and lines, that take you to far off lands, or show you the same world in a myriad of colours, much like the essence of the first drops of rain, and the aroma of earth thereafter."
So in i went, picked up a black basket, with the word CROSSWORD, printed on its sides, and strolled every nook and cranny of the store. From management and media, to fiction and design. From the pages of the Japanese manga novels to the Indian snake charmer's tales. It's easy to get lost in this world, and the hours whiz by, the rain patters on outside, but you trudge along oblivious to your surroundings, occasionally looking at a fellow explorer, and muttering a word or two.
So is it that you know why you go this world of books. Are you quite certain that you know what it is you wish to buy? Or is it just that, it's about the journey and not the destination. You may be enticed by some never heard before author, or perhaps the covers thrill you. Whatever it is, you would always find something of interest in a book store.
Perhaps you would just sit in one corner, and watch the others around you. The young readers, squatting on the floor, reading some comic books and giggling to themselves, while a serious business reader, looking for a book on managing people, smirks at the supposed nuisance irritably, while another gypsy looking reader, browses through the travel section, probably looking for a new destination, at the same while, a man who has been observing above lady with much interests, pretends to try pens at a booth nearby, so that he may keep an eye on her, his teenage son, sneaks a peek into the mature manga novels and fantasizes about the characters, and the girl in green sitting opposite you spots the boy and smirks, and then notices you, and gives you a coy smile, and resumes reading.
Day turns to dusk, and dusk to night. The rain pours on relentlessly. They basket seems to overflow, with the books that seem to have caught your fancy, and you bid the girl goodbye, and make your way to the counter, so that you may purchase the books. But can truly the experience be purchased. The experience of the bookstore, cannot be coined in rupees or dollars, but is an eternal, ever giving experience, that pleases the senses. So while the paper money is exchanged and the transaction billed, as you leave the world, there is a tad bit of sadness, but like most books a flicker of hope, for you will return there again some other day, when your mind is craving, for that wordgasm.
And off into the rain i went, to hail a cab, and most wouldn't relent, after all the roads, were quite crowded, and the journey was short. So while my temper rose, and I wanted to say a word or two to them, that would not suit a gentleman's tone, one lone cabbie, offered me a ride, and I was headed on my way home.
*****************************************************************
The books I picked up:
1. The Best of Roald Dahl - Roald Dahl - Rs. 295
A collection of mature themed stories, that are macabre, morbid, and aimed at giving you sleepless nights. A must read for the horror and mystery story lover. Not for the faint hearted.
2. Buzz Marketing - Mark Hughes - Rs. 500
Its about understanding how buzz marketing works, and at the end of the day being to apply it in your organization.
3. To Room Nineteen - Doris Lessing - Rs. 395
Collection of stories from the 50's till the 90's of passion and confusion in human relations. Nobel Prize Winner 2007.
4. Bombay Rains, Bombay Girls - Anirban Bose - Rs.195
The journey of a boy from Delhi to Bombay, and adjusting to the life here.
5. Wonderboys - Michael Chabon - Rs. 395
The story of an aging novelist, and his attempt and finishing his masterpiece 2000 page novel.
6. Sloppy Firsts - Megan McCafferty - Rs. 600
A teen story, about growing up. Light read. Recommended for people who're absolutely swamped with a lot of stuff, and get very little time to read. It's fun. Helps you revisit your teen years.
******************************************************************
The book I'm starting with today :
The Best of Roald Dahl
So until next time.
Cheerio.
