Ruskin Bond (born 19 May 1934) is an Indian author of British descent. He lives with his adopted family in Landour, Mussoorie, India. The Indian Council for Child Education has recognised his role in the growth of children's literature in India. He was awarded the Sahitya Academy Award in 1992 for Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra, his novel in English. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2014.
He worked for a few years freelancing from Delhi and Dehradun. He sustained himself financially by writing short stories and poems for newspapers and magazines. On his youth, he said, "Sometimes I got lucky and some [work] got selected and I earned a few hundred rupees. Since I was in my 20s and didn’t have any responsibilities I was just happy to be doing what I loved doing best."In 1963, he went to live in Mussoorie because besides liking the place, it was close to the editors and publishers in Delhi. He edited a magazine for four years. In the 1980s, Penguin set up in India and approached him to write some books. He had written Vagrants in the Valley in 1956, as a sequel to The Room on the Roof. These two novels were published in one volume by Penguin India in 1993. The following year a collection of his non-fiction writings, The Best Of Ruskin Bond was published by Penguin India. His interest in supernatural fiction led him to write popular titles such as Ghost Stories from the Raj, A Season of Ghosts, and A Face in the Dark and other Hauntings. Since then he has written over five hundred short stories, essays and novels, including The Blue Umbrella, Funny Side Up, A Flight of Pigeons and more than 50 books for children. He has also published his autobiography: Scenes from a Writer's Life describes his formative years growing up in Anglo-India and a further autobiography, Lone Fox Dancing, was published in 2017. The Lamp is Lit is a collection of essays and episodes from his journal.
Since 1963 he has lived as a freelance writer in Mussoorie, a town in the Himalayan foothills in Uttarakhand where he lives with his adoptive family in Landour, Mussoorie's Ivy Cottage, which has been his home since 1980. Asked what he likes the most about his life, he said, "That I have been able to write for so long. I started at the age of 17 or 18 and I am still writing. If I were not a professional writer who was getting published I would still write." In his essay, "On being an Indian", he explains his Indian identity, "Race did not make me one. Religion did not make me one. But history did. And in the long run, it's history that counts."
His sister Ellen lived in Ludhiana with his step sister until she died in 2014. He also has a brother, William, who lives in Canada.
Questions
and answer
1)Where did Grandfather find the
python? Where did he do with it?
Grandfather found the python with a
snake charmer at the bazaar bought it for six rupees, slung it across his
shoulders and walked home.
2) What
was Grand Mother’s reaction on seeing the python?
When Grandmother saw the python,
she was afraid that the python might strangle Grandfather.
Reference
to context
I) ’He’s
gone’, announced Grandfather. ‘He must have felt hungry?
A) Who is
being referred to in these extracts?
The python
is being referred to in the exact.
B) Where
did he go away from? How?
The
python was missing from the bathroom where it had been kept by the narrator’s
grandfather the narrator guessed that it may have gotten out through the
bathroom’s window that had left open.
Quick Answers:
c. Who
arrived at the narrator’s grandparents’ home, shortly?
Shortly after the
incidents, Aunt Mabel came to the narrator’s grandparents’ home.
d. Where
did the guest first see the python?
The guest saw the python
on the guava tree
Reference to Context :
After
this incident, the python began to make a series of appearances, often in the
most un expected places.
a. After
which incident did the python start making regular appearances?
The incident being
referred to here was the one in which Aunt Mabel saw the python on the guava
tree.
b. What
were some of these ‘unexpected places’?
Later on the snake was
seen under the cushion, in the garden and in front of the mirror of the
dressing table admiring his own reflection.
c. Who
was the most affected by the python’s visits? How did this person react to
these visits?
The one most affected by
the python’s visits was Aunt Mabel.
She wailed and screamed,
and yet when the snake persisted in making appearances before her, she packed
her bags and left.
III)
He set about preparing a large cage
with a mirror at one end. In the cage he left a juicy chicken and various other
delicacies, and fitted up the opening with a trap door
a. Who
began to make this cage and for whom?
The narrator ’s
grandfather made the cage for the python.
b. Why
was this cage being prepared?
The cage was being
prepared so that the snake could be caught.
c. Why
were such elaborate arrangements being made while preparing the cage? What does
this say about who ever was expected to enter the cage?
The elaborate arrangements were being
made for a couple of reasons. First of all, the narrator’s grandfather happened
to know the weakness of the snake and secondly, they wanted to make sure that
the snake did not prowl in the garden for an indefinite period of time. The
python was really fond of admiring his own reflection in the mirror!
Read, Reflect and Write
5. Describe Aunt
Mabel’s reaction when she first saw the python.
When Aunt Mabel first saw
the snake, she was extremely frightened and came running up the steps of the
veranda. It seemed as if she had seen a ghost; she was also exasperated. When
the narrator’s Grandmother tried to console her, she broke down saying she had
seen a twenty feet long boa constrictor. She described its look like a ‘queer’
one and told the narrator’s Grandmother about how she felt that it would devour
her.
6. Why do you
think Grandfather only made half-hearted attempts to get the python out of the
house?
It was the Grandfather
who brought the snake into the house, slinging it around his neck. It shows he
was a brave soul. Through the various incidents described in the chapter, it is
indicated that he wanted to keep it as a pet. Hence, he never perhaps made a very
serious attempt to get rid of it
7. What about the python that was concluded to be its ‘weaknesses’?
It was found that the python loved its reflection in
the mirror. This was construed to be its weakness.
8. The author says that his Grandmother drew the
line at snakes being brought to the house. Having read the story, do you
believe that Grandmother was unkind to snakes or to the particular snake that Grandfather
brought to the house?
The various
depictions in the story, especially in the initial half suggest that Grandmother
was not especially fond of snakes or any reptile for that matter. She tolerated
all the various animals brought into the house but did not really like reptiles
of any kind. Also, the impending arrival of a guest to their house was another
reason why she felt they needed to get rid of the python. But there is no
indication of her being unkind to snakes or this snake in particular in the
story.
