Called by the Hills: A Home in the Himalaya

by Anuradha Roy

A book about building a home and a wild garden on the edge of a Himalayan forest, illuminated by the author's own watercolours.

When novelist Anuradha Roy and her husband stumble upon a derelict cottage in the hill station of Ranikhet, they decide it is where they will now live. Fresh from the neon-lit publishing offices of Delhi, Roy is initially bemused by the gentle pace of life in the mountains but then won spellbound by the landscape, taken into the heart of the community, and adopted by several mountain dogs.

As Roy tries to rebuild the cottage and create a garden, she encounters nature at its most fierce, beautiful, and vulnerable, and over twenty-five years bears witness to the destructive impact of global warming on the alpine ecosystem.

What emerges is an intimate portrait of her surroundings in which rugged nature, loveable dogs, and recalcitrant humans come together to captivating effect. Written with unsentimental clarity, humour, and poignancy, this is a story of profound transformations.

Genres: India, Nature, Nonfiction

188 pages, Hardcover

Published November 20, 2025

About the author

Anuradha Roy was educated in Hyderabad, Calcutta and Cambridge (UK). She is an editor at Permanent Black, an independent press publishing in South Asian history, politics and culture. She lives mainly in Ranikhet, India, with her husband Rukun Advani and their dog, Biscoot.

Reviews

[Anindya Biswas · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was young, as with most other people, the dream of the Himalayas was envisioned through Ruskin Bond's books. Life in a village, next to a forest, with indulgent amas and impromptu adventures seemed to be the only way to live in the Himalayas.

In 2020, when I moved to the hills, it was a different adventure - one where you learn from the village, its cuisine and its festivals. It's one where your inquisitiveness is constantly battling for time with the mundane activities that comprise living in a village.

Anuradha Roy's "Called by the Hills" brought back the innocence of Ruskin Bond books while not being a children's book. It is real - with all the trials and tribulations faced by those living in the hills and yet privileged. A chief reality check being the loss of the many Jerrys who had graced and embellished their owners' lives.

It's a contemporary book on the hills, and contrary to what the author thinks, an important one at that.

[Apoorva Saini · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a memoir/diary about the author's life in Ranikhet, and how she and her husband built a home for themselves in the majestic Himalayas. The book gives us first-hand account of what it takes to cohabit with the wild nature; pre-internet rhythms of the Kamouni life; mountain dogs and the two devastating Covid lockdowns; our love for the soil and why it makes humans happy. The book is a beautiful reflection on the author's choice to live a slow life (despite its many challenges and oddities) and how it's shaped the gardener, publisher, writer, potter, and painter that she is today. The book comes with Roy's remarkably soft illustrations of the community and landscapes around their abode, which undoubtedly carry the same warmth and care with which she writes about her life in the mountains.

[Subodh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read and liked Anuradha Roy's 'All the Lives We Never Lived' a few years back. I have been thinking of reading anothr book of hers but never got around to it, until now. I became aware of this book through a social media post and ordered it on a whim. I am happy that I did. I finished the book in 3 days - it is not a big book - and enjoyed reading it. This is her first non-fiction and expertly draws ther reader into her world as she makes a home in the hills. She beautifully captures the joy of a living a slow-paced life, away from the bustle of big cities, without minimising all the hassles it involves. Towards the end she shares her anguish at the damage being done to the fragile hills in the name of 'development.'

[Vaibhav Srivastav · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anuradha Roy is a favourite writer that I avoid reading because most of her books are entrenched with Sadness, and yet her way of creating characters and describing scenes is exemplary. I picked this book eagerly because it was non-fiction, and it is a delightful memoir (of sorts) which encapsulates a life in Rani Khet surrounded by nature as she and her husband Rukun (who is the central character of a book by Mr Guha but appears sparsely here) leave the city and create a universe, populated by gin drinking octogenarians, small shops and the love of Dogs. The book also has a lot of her paintings and sketches, capturing the hills and her.

[Sheetal Bahl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Anuradha Roy's writing very much, and I love the Kumaon, but it was still very difficult to finish this book. It starts off like a book about the hills, but then quickly converts into a book that is essentially about her garden. And then some about the forests her home is in. And a little about dogs and villagers and everything else. If you're a plant/ tree person, this could work well for you. If not, might be tough.

The standout is the artwork. All done by the author, and all beautiful.

[Amitabh · Rating 5 out of 5]

A touching account of a city-bred couple trying to create a patch of happiness on the hills. Anyone with actual experience of living on hills will appreciate the honesty of the account. The book’s beauty lies in its simple ‘Ruskinesque’ narration. The pages conceal a subtle melancholy strain - the delightful humour and the cheerful paintings adorning the book notwithstanding. The book is highly recommended for those with dreams of settling down in the hills - ‘someday’!

[Ishu Sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

All while reading this book I felt as if I have relocated to Raniket (Himalyas). On purpose I read it alow, I didnt wish it to end.