The Angry River - Review

Such a short and sweet story by Ruskin Bond.  I bought the book for my kid but was more intrigued after reading the synopsis.  The story starts with a small family on the island, a grandfather, a grandmother and a little girl named Sita.  She had lost her mother when she was young and Grandmother had taken her under her wing.  This monsoon starts early and already the river is swollen.  To add to this her Grandmother has been ill for 3 days now.  So when the river is fast rising, she is left alone in the island as her grandparents leave for the hospital.

Lonely and scared, Sita follows her Grandfather's instruction to stay alive.  But the river is really angry that it uproots the only landmark of the island, the Peepul tree.  When Sita is spending her last bit of her energy hanging on to the tree, she meets a saviour.  Could it really be the Lord himself who has come to save her?  What happens to her family?  Will she ever return to her island again?  Will she meet her rescuer again?  Read this book to find out.

Ruskin Bond's story along with Trevor Stubley's illustrations are a delight.  The artist has made a very apt detail of the situation in the book.  When I think it is good, my kid says the illustrations could have been more like the Cover art.  Maybe.. from a kid's point of view.  Sita's courage, selflessness and maturity are displayed in apt places.  Her friendship with the doll and krishan has been portrayed very well.  It makes the reader wishing and hoping for Sita's safety and happiness.  A child's bonding with their grandparents is very special.  Especially if they are the kid's surrogate.  You feel an empathy for her loss. 

Here is a beautiful illustration of scenes by Amar Chitra Katha, when they have adapted the contemporary classics into comics.