Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Collection
Publication
Bantam Classics (1986), Mass Market Paperback, 222 pages
Description
Assuming the character of a wise village storyteller, R K Narayan sits in the cool of an imaginary evening to recount the tales of the centuries.Taken from the Mahabharata, the Ramayana and other Indian epics, the gods and demons, saints and sinners assume their symbolic and philosophical roles without ever losing their human characteristics. It is a measure of the author's achievement that he so subtly imbues them with his own distinctive wit and vision.This book is illustrated throughout by Narayan's brother R K Laxman, with woodcuts based on temple carvings.
User reviews
LibraryThing member isabelx
The author, Valmiki, watched rather helplessly the conclusions that the characters of his epic were working out for themselves. He had a hope that he might be able to bring his hero and heroine together, help the family reunite, and thus round off his tale. But the characters managed their affairs
Fifteen tales of gambling kings, loyal wives, interfering gods, marauding demons and fateful curses. These are traditional tales taken from various Indian epics, told as they would be by a village storyteller.
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in their own way. At the moment when Rama was eager to take Sita back, Sita decided differently. The characters, as they would in any perfect work of art, got out of control. Valmiki let them act in their own way, watched the conclusions as an outsider, and returned to his life of contemplation.Fifteen tales of gambling kings, loyal wives, interfering gods, marauding demons and fateful curses. These are traditional tales taken from various Indian epics, told as they would be by a village storyteller.
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Language
Original language
English
Physical description
222 p.; 6.8 inches
ISBN
0553212400 / 9780553212402