Thick As Thieves: Book Review

“Somewhere in life, there must be someone to take your hand and share the torrid day.

Without the touch of friendship, there is no life and we must fade away……”

It was this quote written on the back cover that attracted me to this book.

How beautiful and so true!! A good, true friend is one on whom you can rely on for all your problems, small or big, mischiefs and peals of laughter. Here, Ruskin Bond presents us with 25 beautifully written anecdotes that are here to remind us of our best friends and to renew our faith in the power of friendship.

But, friendship here is not just limited to people. Here, Bond explores the true meaning of a friend- ‘One who listens, doesn’t judge and somehow makes everything all right.’ The anecdotes range from friendship between humans and animals; humans and nature; and of course friendship among people.

Bond shows how friendship can prosper between people of different age groups, caste, social status, different roles and even different species.

Sometimes, friendship continues even after death and sometimes you just lose touch.

All the stories are so different, each exploring a different kind of friendship, yet the essence is just the same.

Written in Bond’s inimitable style, enhanced with his unparalleled wit and humour, captivating descriptions, and the beautiful expression of such a true bond of friendship, this book is one of my all time favorites.

Although in the social media world, we all have so many Facebook friends, but are we really having ‘True friends’?? This book gives us an opportunity to ponder upon this.

Exciting, funny, touching and heartwarming, this book is the best gift you can give to your friend.

To end in Ruskin Bond’s own words,

” On books and friends I spend my money,

  For stones and bricks I haven’t any.”

Why ‘And Then There Were None’ is perhaps the greatest work ever in crime fiction??

 ‘And Then There Were None’ is a Magnum Opus in crime fiction written by “The Queen of Crime-Agatha Christie”.

 

Stranded alone in a lavish mansion on an island in Devon, with a storm raging around, are ten strangers invited by a mysterious host all set to die one by one.

 

A homicidal maniac is bent on killing ten people in exactly the same way as is described in a #nurseryrhyme.

The book is short and the language used is simple. A small piece of advice, if you are a #tooimaginative person, try not to imagine some murders that sound gruesome. This will keep you from waking in the night imagining the murderer to be in your room.

 

The reason this is perhaps Christie’s masterpiece is that the plot is so adroitly planned with such precision and expertise that the readers are left wondering how it happened.

 

The focus of this crime fiction is on a deep sense of justice and psychological play. Foreboding and constant inevitability is going to keep you hooked to this book.

 

In fact, #agathachristie herself understood the value of this masterpiece as she wrote in her #autobiography ‘An Autobiography’, referring to #andthentherewerenone –“It was well received and reviewed but the person who was really pleased with it was me, for I knew better than any critic how difficult it had been.”

 

How the #murderer manages to isolate all his victims on the island, how s/he manages to kill them one by one, and how logical all the murders seem when they are revealed are for you to find out.

 

So, put on your #readingglasses grab your copy of the book and set out on this enthralling mystery told by a master storyteller.