Amar Prem

Its hard for me to think of a time when books were not part of my life. Books have been the "best friend" that I never had. My constant companion in endless moves across India and the US.

The first time I had ever read a novel was John Grisham's The Pelican Brief. I had sneaked it out from my Dad's desk and was fascinated with the fact that reading was keeping my dad and brother too engaged to pay any attention to me. My 9-year old brain couldn't grasp the complexity of the American legal system but I remember trying to read the whole book.

The bookstore in NOFRA (Naval Officer's Residential Area) in Bombay simply called "Amar" was my mecca for so many years. Evenings would be spent trying to find the latest Archie comics, the new Hardy Boys mystery and the next book in the Sweet Valley High series. My world revolved around making sure Amar saved the latest book for me before anyone else took it. I would dream about meeting Joe Hardy or dressing up like the Wakefield twins. Amar is an icon for anyone who spent their childhood in NOFRA. He always remembered your name, knew who your parents were and whether you had a sibling. My mom would visit Amar in the 70's and 80's for books and when we went back in the 90's after almost a decade, he still remembered her. He hauled his big bulky binder to start an account for her as if no time had passed. May be for Amar, no time had passed. He was surrounded by walls filled with thousands of books that stood testimony to ever changing hands but never changed themselves. May be the leaves of the book had worn out, maybe it wasn't 1996 anymore but Amar kept the "new" book waiting for me.

Years later, in 2011, my parents went to Bombay and visited Amar. He smiled shyly and asked "Seema baby kaisi hai?" (How is little Seema?). And then he asked about my brother while he posed for a picture in front of his shop.

                                                                      Amar in front of the store

Reading list for the uninitiated and in no particular order :

• Outsiders - S.E. Hinton
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea - Jules Verne
• Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
• Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
• Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
• Autobiography of a Yogi- Paramahansa Yogananda
• A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
• Outlander Series - Diana Gabaldon
• Selected Stories - Alice Munro 
• Wooster and Jeeves - P.G. Wodehouse