Classical Theatre of China Book

Excerpts from my review at Solomon Says:

"My Life in My Words" is divided into two sections; the first titled "My Life" is the actual autobiography in 25 chapters. It starts with a brief outline UDG, then hands over to excerpts carefully culled from Tagore's vast body of writing (in Bangla and English) and his voluminous correspondence to paint a complete picture of the events, and ideas dominating a period of his life. The result is quite unlike a regular biography.

The second and much shorter section titled "My Thoughts" is a more conventional affair, being a collection of short pieces (usually excerpts from longer works) on subjects that mattered the most to Tagore - nature, his country, and his life. These are extremely impassioned pieces, in some ways much more autobiographical than the previous section.

This book is not merely about Tagore. It is about the cultural and political currents of Bengal of his times. It is about Ram Mohan Roy's renaissance, Calcutta's urbanization, and the retreat of the wilderness. It is about the world as it convulsed with two world wars, about oriental nations rejecting their ancient identities in favour of a hollow and bellicose westernization, and about an India struggling with its identity and independence.

The most fascinating sections of the book are those which describe the author's childhood. His prose-poetry brings his own vivid imagination to life in writing and drags the reader into the wide open spaces and narrow corridors where he played as child. Effused with childlike wonder at everything, it is effortless to read and impossible to not be enchanted by.

For bringing afresh to us the words of Rabindranath Tagore, often ignored in our times as a brilliant but reclusive poet, we are indebted to UDG. Although in no way comparable to a complete collection of works more suitable to research, My Life in My Words is an enchanting glimpse into his multifaceted personality. If you must know India, you must know Tagore, and this book is a fantastic stepping stone for this.