Stephen King’s bestselling story published as stand Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption
- By Stephen King
Published: Hodder & Stoughton
One of the most iconic stories by the acclaimed author Stephen King, ‘Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption’ is now released as a standalone book. The story that was adapted into an Oscar-nominated movie ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ was originally a part of a collection that was released in 1982.
The book is regarded one of King’s most iconic stories, and it helped to make Castle Rock, a place readers would return to, over and over again. Suspenseful, mysterious, and heart-wrenching, this novella, populated by a cast of unforgettable characters is about a fiercely compelling convict named Andy Dufresne who is seeking his ultimate revenge.
Originally published in 1982 in the collection ‘Different Seasons’ (alongside ‘The Body’, ‘Apt Pupil’, and ‘The Breathing Method’), it was adapted to the big screen in 1994, starring Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins, and went on to be nominated for seven Academy Awards, including the best picture.
King has authored more than 60 books, including ‘If It Bleeds’, ‘The Institute’, ‘Elevation’, the short story collection ‘The Bazaar of Bad Dreams’ and the Bill Hodges trilogy ‘End of Watch’, ‘Finders Keepers’, and ‘Mr. Mercedes’.
Girish Karnad’s memoir
to be out in English
This Life at Play: A Memoir
- By Girish Karnad
Published: Harper Collins
Girish Karnad, one of modern India’s greatest cultural figures, first published his memoir in Kannada in 2011, and now it is to be published in English as ‘This Life at Play: A Memoir by Girish Karnad’ in this May.
The book is translated from Kannada into English by two writers, the first part by the actor-playwright himself, the last part by award-winning translator Srinath Perur. The reason is Girish Karnad’s untimely death and the book will be released on the director’s 83rd birth anniversary on May 19 by ‘Fourth Estate’, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers.
Covering the first half of his remarkable life, from growing up in Dharwad and engaging with local theatre, to his education in Mumbai and as a Rhodes Scholar in Oxford, his career as a publisher, his successes and travails in the film industry, and his personal and writerly life, Karnad’s inimitable voice shines through it all. The no-holds-barred account provides a glimpse into the life-shaping experiences of this towering figure on India’s cultural scene, and a unique window into the India in which he lived and worked.
“Our father lived through every decade of independent India - his writing and thinking were a mirror of the life of the country, and especially its arts,” say his children Radha and Raghu.
“As we told him all the time, in the later years, his career had to culminate in a memoir reflecting on that journey, and here are those reflections - brought into English in part by Appa himself, and in part by the exceptionally skillful writer and translator Srinath Perur, who was our father’s own preference to complete the work,” they added.
Ruskin Bond’s All-Time Favourites for Children published
All Time Favourites for Children
- By Ruskin Bond
Published: Penguin Random House
‘All Time Favourites for Children’ celebrates Ruskin Bond’s writing with stories that are perennially loved and can now be enjoyed in a single collectible volume.
Curated and selected by India’s most loved writer, this collection brings some of the evocative episodes from Ruskin’s life, iconic Rusty, eccentric Uncle Ken, ubiquitous grandmother, and many other charming, endearing characters in a single volume while also introducing us to a smattering of new ones that are sure to be firm favourites with young readers. Heart-warming, funny and spirited, this is a must-have on every bookshelf.
Ruskin Bond, born on May 19 1934, is an Indian author of British descent. He lives with his adopted family in Landour, Mussoorie, India. The Indian Council for Child Education has recognised his role in the growth of children’s literature in India. He was awarded the Sahitya Academy Award in 1992 for ‘Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra’, his novel in English. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2014.
The book includes 25 stories, and they are accompanied by beautiful illustrations too. It engages middle-school students, an essential book to be stocked in libraries.
Priyanka Chopra’s memoir ‘Unfinished’ out Unfinished
- By Priyanka Chopra Jonas
Published: Penguin Random House
Famous Bollywood and Hollywood actress Priyanka Chopra’s new memoir ‘Unfinished’ was published recently. A remarkable life story rooted in two different worlds, ‘Unfinished’ offers insights into Priyanka Chopra Jonas’s childhood in India, her formative teenage years in the United States. and her return to India, where against all odds as a newcomer to the pageant world, she won the national and international beauty competitions that launched her global acting career.
Whether reflecting on her nomadic early years or the challenges she has faced as she has doggedly pursued her calling, Priyanka shares her challenges and triumphs with warmth and honesty. The result is a book that is philosophical, sassy, inspiring, bold, and rebellious. Just like the author herself.
From her dual-continent twenty-year-long career as an actor and producer to her work as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, from losing her beloved father to cancer to marrying Nick Jonas, Priyanka Chopra Jonas’s story will inspire a generation around the world to gather their courage, embrace their ambition, and commit to the hard work of following their dreams.
‘I am a product of traditional India and its ancient wisdom, and modern India and its urban bustle. My upbringing was always an amalgamation of the two Indias, and, just as much, of East and West.’ She writes in her memoir. The book is a New York Times bestselling book.
Compiled by: Ravindra Wijewardhane