3 Review(s)

Natraj is the likable owner of a print shop, a man with no enemies. His placid life is overturned when Vasu, a powerful taxidermist and a big blustering bully, moves into the attic above his shop; with him come stuffed hyenas, pythons, tigers and a retinue of dancing girls. When in search for a bigger game Vasu threatens the life of the temple elephant, the simple and timid print shop owner turns street-smart, becomes less of a pushover and is ready to take on the big bully... A sizzling temple dancer, Rangi, and Natraj's personal assistant Sastri, add to the novel's unique charm and delightfully wicked humour. WHAT THE PRESS SAYS "Pungent as a Madras Curry, The Man-Eater of Malgudi makes a most rich and satisfying mixture. Hilarity and high seriousness are rarely yoked together in partnership as effectively as they are in this book... Mr. Narayan's writing is limpid and beautifully unforced..." — Times Literary Supplement, London About the Author R. K. Narayan was born in Madras in south India and educated in Mysore which had also been his home for over half-a-century now. Narayan was one of India's most distinguished writers at work today. Through his several novels and short stories, he had created the enchanting fictional world of Malgudi which has captivated his readers throughout the world and, more recently, millions of Indian television viewers who saw TV adaptations of several of his Malgudi stories. Narayan's books are regularly published in USA, UK and India and have also been widely translated into several European and Indian languages. His novel The Guide (1958) won the Sahitya Akademi Award, India's highest literary honour. In 1980, Narayan was awarded the A.C. Benson Medal by the Royal Society of Literature and in 1982 he was made an Honorary Member of the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters. In 1986, he was nominated for a 6-year term to Rajya Sabha, the Upper House of Indian Parliament in recognition of his outstanding literary stature. Apart from The Mahabharata, Narayan had also retold the other great Indian epic The Ramayana, as well as a selection of Indian legends in Gods, Demons and Others.