The major themes of this Ruskin Bond story are change and the isolation/loneliness of the aged. An old man in a once rural Indian village lays back and reflects on his life as a professional kitemaker and how much the world has changed. The village’s traditional social structure, sport of adult kite flying, open spaces, and once close community spirit are no more. His only joy in life is spending time with and making kites for his grandson. A torn kite carried by the wind far above the city symbolizes release of his soul. Other themes: tradition, nostalgia, pride, mortality. More…
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The Cherry Tree
The Cherry Tree from Ruskin Bond contrasts the enduring cycles of nature with the changing world of man. An allegory of parenthood in which a young boy plants a cherry seed and watches as it grows into a tree. He nurtures and protects the tree and, once it is grown, asks: What’s so special about this tree? When his grandfather answers that it’s because they planted it themselves, he responds with pride: is this what it feels to be God? Themes: the beauty and bounty of nature, change, growth, responsibility, caring, achievement, pride. More…
A Face in the Dark
The power of this very short horror story from Ruskin Bond is in the way the events described mirror what one might experience in a nightmare. As an alternative to supernatural forces, Bond cleverly presents a logical explanation for the night’s events: the way faces can appear ghostly by torchlight. Either way, the major theme of the story is fear when confronted with the unknown. A possible moral is that we shouldn’t judge people who look or dress differently due to their race, class, gender identity, religion, etc. Other themes: the supernatural, imagination vs. reality. More…
Pret in the House / Ghost Trouble
This light-hearted children’s tale from master storyteller Ruskin Bond reflects a once common Indian belief that ghosts and other spirits (pret) inhabit certain types of tree. If something happens to such a tree, these are set free and must find a new home. There are many kinds of pret. Fortunately, the one that moves into a family’s house in this story is of the mischievous rather than dangerous or hungry variety. When its playful pranks become too annoying, the family decides to move away. This does not prove as easy as they thought! Themes: superstition, progress, family connectedness. More…
When Darkness Falls
One of Ruskin Bond’s strengths is his ability to portray characters that are so life-like readers can empathize with them. So it is with this tragic story of man so frightfully disfigured by war that he is afraid to leave his room by day, and confines himself to creeping phantom-like around an aging hotel by night. His two loves in life: his books and music. The message of the story: before turning away from the grossly disfigured or disabled, stop to consider the feelings of the human being within. Themes: appearance, fear, despair, the healing power of music. More…
A Tiger in the House
In this story by Ruskin Bond, an old man finds what appears to be an orphan tiger cub in the jungle and takes it home as a family pet. After six months, the cub grows out of its ‘playful’ stage and starts to become less friendly. The old man donates the tiger to a zoo, and gets an unexpected surprise when he visits it six months later. The story raises serious questions as to whether the man’s two decisions (to take the tiger cub home, and to give the grown animal to a zoo) were in the animal’s best interests. More…