I have a big list of books I have read or possess. I usually read from my own collection, built over the years, where at any given point in time the unread books are in double digits. I like going to bookshops to buy my books, or picking one up at the railway station or the airport. Once in a while I visit libraries too. In fact, for some time, browsing books on Church Street was a weekend ritual.
I used to love going to book fairs when I was in Patna. The place has a rich literary heritage, especially in Hindi literature. There's a literature festival in Bangalore, but I have not attended any book fairs there yet. In fact, I have not attended one after college.
My three-year stint as library in-charge of my school's student council
was the formative period of my reading, I'd say. It left a profound
impression on my taste and the nuances of my reading. Those were the best
of my years. For books and everything else. The last few years of innocence.
The books I read in school were mostly Hindi books.
School is also where I was introduced to literature from other countries, both in Hindi and English.
I remember reading The Cossacks and then Tagore's Gora as Hindi translations.
I think that is where I had read Maxim Gorky's Mother as well, but I do not remember now. Maybe I didn't.
Then I went to Patna to study engineering and the amount of reading reduced, not necessarily because I had less time. Time I had, but the priorities had changed. I did try to keep up. Ashok Rajpath near dental college was a favourite locality with roadside stalls selling week-old or month-old magazines and books at affordable prices. Whatever I lost in reading literary books, I tried to overcompensate for by buying many magazines from those vendors. I remember one seller, whom I used to call Raju bhaiya. Hans, Kathadesh, Reader's Digest and a few old Granta issues were among them, along with many other magazines such as Outlook et cetera. I'd buy whatever I could get my hands on, as per the remaining pocket money at that time of month.
After college, I moved to Indore. I don't think I read anything there except a Jeffrey Archer novel on an office computer. In Bangalore, I have been reading again. Intermittently.
So here is a small list of books I have read.
Items marked with a star (*) come highly recommended.