Perumal Murugan is one of the best Indian writers today. He trains his unsentimental eye on men and women who live in the margins of our society. He tells their stories with deep sympathy and calm clarity. A lonely night watchman falls in love with the ghost of a rape victim. A terrified young goat thief finds himself surrounded by a mob baying for his blood. An old peasant exhausted by a lifetime of labour is consumed by jealousy and driven to an act of total destruction. Set in the arid Kongu landscape of rural Tamil Nadu, these tales illuminate the extraordinary acts that make up everyday lives.
The Goat Thief is the latest book by celebrated author
Perumal Murugan, translated into English by N. Kalyan Raman & published by
Juggernaut publishers. A master storyteller, Perumal Murugan has written
award-winning novels, short stories & poems. He is also a professor of
Tamil language & literature & a beloved teacher. His best known work is
Maadorubagan (One Part Woman) that attracted fierce controversy along immense
acclaim.
This book is a collection of 10 short stories, each with riveting
subjects which will surely intrigue every single reader. It starts with The Well where the protagonist went for
a leisure swim with some kids but things take a wild turn in an unexpected end.
The second story The Wailing of a Toilet
Bowl is the story of an innocent newlywed bride who hails from a village
but has moved to the city to live with her husband. As she tries to settle in
the new environment, there are a couple of things which troubles her & her
husband isn’t much of help either instead he instills another fear which proves
to be deadly. To read more such stories which will surely get your jaw dropped
to the ground, get this book here RIGHT NOW!
It has been quite some time since I’ve read a translated
work & I’m so glad that I got a chance to review this book as I have been
planning to read a book by Perumal Murugan since ages & I get why he is so
famous. All the 10 short stories are different in their own way, the author’s
ability to change a simple story into something so riveting that you won’t be
able to keep the book down. The translator has done an exemplary job which can’t
be ignored. The language is simple, the title in interesting & so is the
cover. A must read!
Thank you Juggernaut Publishers for this review copy.
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