Rusty Books

A classic coming-of-age story which has held generations of readers spellbound! Rusty, a sixteen-year-old Anglo-Indian boy, is orphaned, and has to live with his English guardian in the claustrophobic European part in Dehra Dun. Unhappy with the strict ways of his guardian, Rusty runs away from home to live with his Indian friends. Plunging for the first time into the dream-bright world of the bazaar, Hindu festivals and other aspects of Indian life, Rusty is enchanted … and is lost forever to the prim proprieties of the European community. Written when the author was himself seventeen, this moving story of love and friendship, with a new introduction and illustrations will be enjoyed by a whole new generation of readers.

An evergreen classic about friendship and growing up, by a master storyteller This book catches up with our favourite Rusty as he plunges not just into the cold pools of Dehra but into an exciting new life, dipping his toes into adulthood. Winding his way back to the city with Kishen, Rusty discovers that his beloved room is no longer his! Undaunted, however, and in his trademark style, he forges new homes and new friendships as he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that spans the beautiful hillsides of India. By turns thrilling and nostalgic, this heart-warming sequel is Rusty is at his best as he navigates the tightrope between dreams and reality, all the time maintaining a glorious sense of hope. Striking, evocative, witty and wise-this is an ode to youth and all its complexities, amidst the colours, sights and smells of Bond's India.

In the five years of his life that this book traces, Rusty's story is taken forward to his adolescent years. His world is turned topsy-turvy as many upheavals besiege him. After his father and grandmother pass away in quick succession, the twelve-year-old is left in the care of a guardian, Mr Harrison, in Dehra. But after a mysterious incident involving his stepfather and the gardener, he is sent away to boarding school. Restlessness compels him to run away from school, with an ambition to travel the world. But the plan fails, and he is soon back in Dehra, with his strict guardian. Rusty is now seventeen. He rebels and leaves home again, this time for good. Adventurous and thought-provoking, Rusty Runs Away is a book that children and young adults everywhere will enjoy.

Rusty s adventures in the Doon valley and the Garhwal hills. Rusty, having run away from his guardian s home, is now trying to define his identity as he lives with the Kapoor family, tutoring their son Kishen and occupying the room on the roof. Soon, he becomes close to Kishen and, in the company of Meena Kapoor, begins to come into his own as an individual. Then tragedy strikes Meena s death devastates Rusty, and he leaves Dehra Dun. Rusty and Kishen take to the open road, and their adventures accumulate as they tramp through the Doon valley and the Garhwal hills. His time on the road allows Rusty to decide what he really wants to do and by the end of the book he is preparing for a trip to London, dreaming of becoming a writer. Full of incident as well as introspection, this is a book older children will thoroughly enjoy.

Rusty Comes Home chronicles Rusty s exploits after his return from London, as he explores Delhi, Dehra and the small, dusty town of Shahganj before settling down in Mussoorie, making his living as a writer, revelling in his beloved hills. This collection contains some captivating stories about Rusty s friends and fleeting acquaintances, about human nature and the supernatural. He meets a motley bunch of people including Suresh, a disabled child with whom Rusty strikes up a close bond, Uncle Bill, who makes it his habit to poison people with arsenic, and the incredible Jimmy, a jinn who can extend his arms at will to infinite lengths. Full of charming and idiosyncratic characters, these stories of love, loss and adventure will appeal to readers of all ages.

In his early twenties now, Rusty finally leaves Dehra and books a passage to England, dreaming of writing and selling his novel abroad. First in Jersey, and then in in London, he works as a clerk by day and writes in the evenings. Eventually, the novel is finished and Rusty even finds a publisher. But this, he discovers, does not mean that his book will see the light of day soon. But London has many adventures in store for Rusty. Strolling down Baker Street, he runs into Sherlock Holmes, is accosted by Rudyard Kipling and has an escapade in the Chinese quarter! After three years abroad, however, Rusty realizes that he wants to make India his permanent home. Returning to Dehra, he renews some acquaintances and makes a few new ones, and settles into his role as full-time author. Full of interesting stories and memorable characters, Rusty Goes to London will delight all of Ruskin Bond's fans.

From the time he was a boy living with his grandparents in Dehra; surrounded by an assortment of odd animals; people and relatives; to when he gets sent away to school; then makes his way to London and becomes a writer; Rusty’s had more adventures than we can count. The Adventures of Rusty brings together his best; funniest; most exciting escapades. In these pages there’s Toto; the monkey that travelled in a bag in a train; an encounter with a leopard; life as a young writer in faraway London; and the return home to roots that were always loved and never forgotten. An evergreen classic of children’s writing in India; Rusty’s stories will be enjoyed like never before in this omnibus edition.

Rusty is a quiet, imaginative and sensitive boy who lives with his grandparents in pre-Independence Dehra Dun. Though he is not the adventurous himself, the strangest and most extraordinary things keep happening around him. The house in Dehra is full of strange creatures. Rusty has to deal with everything from his grandfather's pet python to the ever-inventive Uncle Ken. Visiting his father in wartime Java, Rusty narrowly escapes enemy bombardment, and survives a plane crash in the Arabian Sea. Back in India, he spends his time encountering a ghost in the garden and recreating his grandmother's youthful days from an old photograph. Then, something totally unexpected happens and Rusty is forced to leave Dehra, his future uncertain ... This volume of Rusty stories, the first in a series, traces Rusty's development from early childhood to his early teens and is a riveting read for younger and older children alike.

'Adventure is for the adventurous.' Rusty and his friends Pitamber and Popat find adventure in no small measure when they set out to climb a mysterious mountain steeped in legend and superstition. On their way they shelter in a haunted rest house, encounter a tiger and experience a hilarious mule ride, which takes them to the palace of a mad rani. Ruskin Bond returns with a brand-new Rusty adventure after more than a decade. A rollicking tale of humour and enchantment, Rusty and the Magic Mountain will win the much-loved character of Rusty a whole new band of followers.