Love Is a Sad Song

by Ruskin Bond

Genres: Romance

Paperback

Published December 2, 1976

About the author

Ruskin Bond is an Indian author of British descent. He is considered to be an icon among Indian writers and children's authors and a top novelist. He wrote his first novel, The Room on the Roof, when he was seventeen which won John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize in 1957. Since then he has written several novellas, over 500 short stories, as well as various essays and poems, all of which have established him as one of the best-loved and most admired chroniclers of contemporary India. In 1992 he received the Sahitya Akademi award for English writing, for his short stories collection, "Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra", by the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters in India. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1999 for contributions to children's literature. He now lives with his adopted family in Landour near Mussoorie.

Reviews

[Helly · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of Bond's underrated Gems.

[Prasanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ruskin Bond is indeed a master in crafting soulful, lilting romantic tales set in the midst of his beloved mountains and this story is a staunch example of his talent. I wish the tale had ended on a different note but I should have got an inkling of it looking at the title of the story. If this is a true story, I can only feel a gist of the repent Sushila must be feeling.

[Sachin Vishnoi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting but unfinished story.

[NAP · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars
I am conflicted. On side you see Bond's love for the mountains seeping out of the story and on the other the other he came with the narrator. He gave me the creeps. He seems very self aware and yet you see how delusional he is. But that is not the reason I give this story a low rating. It is the ending. What's with the ending? Sushila is just a child, why portray her as femme fatale? I feel like the story just stopped abruptly.

As I write this review, it makes me think, was Sushila really a femme fatale or was it just the men around her painting that image of her. Because we hardly ever get Sushila's perspective or what's on her mind. Hell! She never vocalizes her wish to marry the narrator. Everything we know about Sushila is through the narrator, Pramod and Sunil.

You know what, I'll increase my rating to 3 stars

[Rune · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel disturbed and disgusted. He's 30 and she's 15, not old enough to distinguish between love, lust, and manipulation. And the fact that it is semi-autobiographical is just so horrible. And the writer wrote that he keeps wondering if he seduced her or the girl seduced him!! TF! The girl's brother was the only sane character I felt that way about, because of how he reacted when he found out about it. I just don't get how men could fall in love so easily with girls half their age and sometimes even 1/3 of their age. It would have been ok if they were older but 15 and 30 is just so wrong!

[Ayesha Shaw]

Ruskin bond is indeed a versatile writer the way he expressed the feelings of love and passion in this short story is really heart rending and also the ending which reveals the nasty reality of the contemporary world.

[Tej]

👌

[Rinku Kanwar · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ruskin bond