The Sunday Haul (on 22-09-2024)

 Last Sunday, mercifully it did not rain here in Hyderabad so my trip to Abids was on. But due to some wrong planning on my part and some unexpected delays I could not spend much time at Abids. However, I was able to find the copy of ‘The Heart is a Lonely Hunter’ by Carson McCullers that I had seen the previous week and hadn’t bought. 

 

The copy of ‘The Heart is a Lonely Hunter’ by Carson McCullers had a beautiful white cover and I bought it though I already have a copy at home. But the copy I found at Abids last Sunday was a Penguin edition and smaller in size than the copy I had that was a first Mariner Books 2000 edition with a photograph of the author with the saddest face I have ever seen. 

The Sunday Haul (on 15-09-2024)

 After what seemed like a fortnight of wet weather Hyderabad had some beautiful weather since the past one week. The sun shone brightly last Sunday in Hyderabad brightening up the day and also my mood. Add to it my son agreed to come along with me to Abids. It meant I could get to Abids on a two wheeler earlier than my usual time. So off we went after breakfast and reached Abids only to find some sellers were not at their usual places because some of the shops were opened for the wedding/festival crowd.

I bought only one book and that was a nice copy of ‘The Big Sleep’ by Raymond Chandler that was a Black Lizard Vintage Crime edition. I already have two copies of this title but did not want to miss this beautiful copy so I bought it for just eighty rupees. 

 

Afterwards we had chai and chota samosa in the Star of India café and sat for a while talking. He hadn’t found anything interesting and I did not want to suggest anything to him because I wanted him to choose his own titles that he wanted to read. 

 

I had seen a beautiful copy of ‘The Crying of Lot 49’ by Thomas Pynchon with the seller right beside Star of India, and later I spotted a nice copy of ‘The Heart is a Lonely Hunter’ by Carson McCullers that I did not buy. I thought maybe I wouldn’t be able to find the time to read Pynchon’s book though I have a copy of ‘The Heart is a Lonely Hunter’ that I have already read. If I find them next Sunday I will pick them up because the copy of ‘The Heart is a Lonely Hunter’ is too beautiful to miss because of its wonderful cover. 

The Sunday Haul (on 08-09-2024)

 Last week too the wet weather continued though it did not rain on Sunday until after I had bought just one book there. It was a wet and miserable week we in Telangana had with daily rain, and not just rain but heavy downpour all the time. I thought it wouldn’t rain on Sunday last when I stepped out of the house and looked at the clouds in the sky. I took a chance and left for Abids after breakfast. 

Since a couple of months I have begun a new routine as I am traveling by city bus after my accident in November last. So I began first with the sellers at Chikkadpally. With one of the sellers I found a copy of ‘The Sound of Mountain Water’ by Wallace Stegner, a book of essays on the West in the US. I also have his ‘Where the BlueBird Sings to the  Lemonade Springs’  and also ‘Second Growth’  that I had found long back but haven’t yet read. 

 

After that I got to Abids in a longish way, first going to Afzal Gunj and then catching an 8A and getting down near the GPO. First, I had chai and chota samosa in Grand Hotel and then began my hunt. I found a copy of a Telugu book- ‘Viewlu, Reviewlu’ by Sri Sri or Srirangam Srinivas Shastry, the popular leftist writer known for his fiery lyrics. This was a book of his essays and his reviews of Telugu novels and other books. I got it for fifty rupees and felt glad at finding this wonderful book. I had found one of his most famous books, a collection of verse, ‘Mahaprasthanam’ long back. 

 

Then moments later it began to drizzle and it became a steady downpour. I watched as the booksellers hastily covered the books on the pavement with plastic sheets. I knew they would all wind up their business if it continued to rain and so lost heart in going around further. I went to Nampally and got into 20P that would take me home. 

The Sunday Haul That Wasn’t

 Since Friday last week it rained heavily and continuously in Telangana as well as Hyderabad which put life out of gear for everyone. Since no bookseller would want to put out his books on the pavements in such weather at Abids I too dropped the idea of going there on Sunday. It was on Sunday that it rained the heaviest. Somehow I missed going to Abids, looking for books, having chai in the Irani and returning home heart filled with that joy that comes with buying good books.

 However, on last Thursday I had dropped in at ‘Unique’ bookstore in Khairatabad and found a gem there on the shelves. I spotted a copy of ‘Flannery O’ Connor: The Complete Stories’ with an attractive cover that featured a peacock. Though it was priced at three hundred rupees I did not want to miss buying it and regret later since it had thirty one stories including her famous ‘All that Rises Must Converge’ and ‘A Good Man is Hard to Find’ that I had already read. 

I had found a copy of another collection by Flannery O’ Connor titled ‘All that Rises Must Converge’ sometime recently that had … stories that are also included in ‘Flannery O’ Connor: The Complete Stories’. The list of the thirty-one stories in it is as follows: The Geranium, The Barber, Wildcat, The Crop, The Turkey, The Train, The Peeler, The Heart of the Park, A Stroke of Good Fortune, Enoch and the Gorilla, A Good Man is Hard to Find, A Late Encounter with the Enemy, The Life You Save May Be Your Own, The River, A Circle in the Fire, The Displaced Person, A Temple of the Holy Ghost, The Artificial Nigger, Good Country People, You Can’t Be Any Poorer Than Dead, Greenleaf, A View of the Woods, The Enduring Chill, The Comforts of Home, Every That Rises Must Converge, The Partridge Festival, The Lame Shall Enter First, Why Do the Heathen Rage?, Revelation, Parker’s Back, and Judgement Day.

 

There’s an Introduction by Robert Giroux that throws light on Flannery O' Connor the writer and the person.  

The Sunday Haul (on 25.08.2025)

 During the monsoon naturally it rains and so there’s nothing anyone can do about it. But the only day I do not want it to rain is on a Sunday. Luckily for me it didn’t rain last Sunday when I set out for Abids. It was cloudy, though. Since last November when I fractured my right shoulder bone in a minor accident I am travelling by bus and avoiding riding the two-wheeler. Until recently I used to travel on a different route, partly by bus and partly by Uber Moto. Recently I discovered a different route where I could get a bus that would drop me near home. So I changed my Abids routine starting from Chikkadpally instead of the other way around.

 

Last Sunday I began my browsing first at RTC Crossroads where there is a seller at the junction. Here I found a copy of ‘Woodworm’ by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay with a lovely cover that I got for fifty rupees. Then onwards to Chikkadpally where I saw nothing worth buying. 

Later I got dropped at Abids, and after the customary chai at the Irani café I saw a copy of ‘In Transit’ by Mavis Gallant, a collection of short stories by this wonderful Canadian writer. I got this too for fifty rupees only. 

 

Then with another seller near Bata in a heap of books selling for Rs.50 I found a copy of ‘Respected Sir’ by Naguib Mahfouz, the Nobel laureate from Egypt, that I was thrilled to find. 

Then in the same heap I found a copy of ‘The Story of a Seaside Village’ by Thoppil Mohammed Meeran that appeared very interesting. Both these books are slim volumes that one can finish reading in a few hours. 

 

The other week I saw an ad by The Hindu Group of Publications about some of their books in The Hindu paper. One of the books was ‘Ashokamitran: Beyond Fiction’ that I ordered because Ashokamitran is one of my favourite writers and I wanted to know what this book was. It was delivered the other day, and I am thrilled to find so many pieces by Ashokamitran that I haven’t read. 

The Sunday Haul (on 18.08.2024)

 It was very sunny and also hot in Hyderabad last Sunday. Since the couple of days the weather has been like this, hot and humid in the morning and thunderstorms with heavy rains in the late afternoon or evening.  Even as I was about to leave after completing my browsing and picking up three wonderful titles the sky became dark with clouds as if it is going to rain heavily but it did not. 

The first title I found was a copy of ‘Seven Pillars of Wisdom’ by TE Lawrence, a title that I already have though I could not locate it when I wanted to read it. The copy I saw last Sunday was a different edition and had a beautiful cover but it seemed to be have been pressed to one side. On the whole it was in good condition and I did not want to leave it behind. I was pleased when the seller asked for only fifty rupees for this book.

On way my home I did not want to stop at the last seller as I had not bought anything from him since a long time since he had the same books I’ve been seeing since quite a long time. Last Sunday the seller, a young fellow, stopped me and told me to take a look at the books he had in a sack. Though impatient to leave as it was getting quite late I decided to see what he had as he took out the books one by one from the sack and showed them to me. 

 

When I saw the copy of ‘Understanding the Muslim Mind’ by Rajmohan Gandhi I wanted to take it. I had bought another title by the same author not long ago and though I had not read it I wanted this title by him too. 

The other book I took was a Penguin Classics edition of ‘Odyssey’ by Homer tr: E.V. Rieu who was also editor of Penguin Classics for more than two decades. I am embarrassed to reveal that I have not read this classic work till date and promised myself to begin reading it since I have at last bought it. When I got home and showed my son the books I had bought he told me I already have a copy of ‘Odyssey’ that surprised me since I do not remember buying it earlier. 

The Sunday Haul (on 11-08-2024)

  Last Sunday it was again sunny and bright with no sign of cloud or rain which was something I hoped for since I would be going to the second-hand book bazaar at Abids. Though I had planned to go at my usual time I had to go a bit earlier because Hari had said he would be there with a box of books to give away to one of the sellers. After he gave away the carton and a bag of books, we sat in the Star of India café and had chota samosa and chai over a conversation that we have been having ever since we met way back in 1996.

 

Just before I met Hari I managed to find two good titles. The first title I found was a copy of ‘Spider’ by Michael Morley that was a crime fiction title that I love to read and also it was a Penguin title. So I picked it up hoping it would be a good read though I had not heard of the author before but I bought it because it was a Penguin book. I got it for eighty rupees.

 

The next title I found was an almost new copy of ‘The Conscience of a Liberal’ by Michael Krugman, the famous economist whose columns appear in many dailies worldwide. It stood out with its attractive cover and I bought it for a hundred rupees. I sometimes like to read about subjects I am not very interested in but am curious to know on the surface. I hope it is something I would find interesting. 

 

Narendra Luther is a name many Hyderabadis will be familiar with since he was a well-known writer who has written several books about history of Hyderabad and its past rulers. Other than that he was a senior and respected IAS officer who also served as the Chief Secretary of united Andhra Pradesh. I saw him a couple of times in literary gatherings when he was active. He had a tremendous sense of humour. Though I haven’t read his books I remember he used to write occasional pieces in the local papers. Anyway, I saw a nice copy of ‘A Bonsai Tree’ by Narendra Luther at Chikkadpally. It was his autobiography and was a hardcover. I got it for a hundred rupees. 

The Sunday Haul (on 04-08-2024)

 There have been no rains in Hyderabad since the past few days and it did not rain on Sunday too. In fact, it was bright and sunny in the morning on Sunday when I set out. First I stopped at Chikkadpally and found two wonderful titles. 

The first find was ‘Goa Travels’ edited by Manohar Shetty that was a collection of articles by visitors to Goa and travelers of yore when Goa was under Portugese rule. The introduction by the famous writer and poet of Goa, Manohar Shetty, gives a wonderful account of the background of the articles in the collection. I feel lucky to have found it. 

 

‘Things Fall Apart’ by Chinua Achebe is one of my favorite books that I love so much that I buy each and every copy I come across. This copy that I bought at Chikkadpally last Sunday must be my tenth or eleventh copy, and one that has the iconic cover. It is in good condition and I paid one hundred and fifty rupees for both these titles. 

 

At Abids that I reached on an Uber moto, I found a copy of ‘Seven Summers’ by Mulk Raj Anand, and it says ‘Confessional Story’ on the cover. On the back cover I read that it was a ‘Mayfair Paperbacks: A division of Arnold-Heinemann. This 1987 edition published and printed in India has that font that I’ve always found to be extremely readable though I have no idea which font it is.

 

Since I had come earlier than my usual time I had finished going around all the booksellers and thought I’d drop in at the Best Books second hand bookstore down the street. Here I found a wonderful travel title about Southern Africa. It was a Penguin title and was in good condition. It was a copy of ‘The Electronic Elephant: A Southern African Journey’ by Dan Jacobson. However I had to shell out two hundred and fifty rupees for it. 

The Sunday Haul (on 28-07-2024)

 After almost ten days at last the sun was out in Hyderabad last Sunday. Then there was the festive air due to the Bonalu festival all which got me out of the gloomy mood that had persisted all through the days when it rained and when it didn’t rain but was cloudy. 

 

I first began with Chikkadpally this Sunday too, and there I found a copy of ‘Good English: How to Write It’ by G.H. Vallins that I had seen the previous Sunday. I already have a copy of this book but am unable to find it so I bought this second copy. 

 

Then I went to Abids and the first title I found was a good copy of ‘The Magic Mountain’ by Thomas Mann, a Penguin edition that I got for only fifty rupees. It runs into almost seven hundred pages of close print and I don’t know when I will find the time to read it. 

 

The next find was a nice copy of ‘The Club Dumas’ by Arturo Perez-Reverte, and right beside it was a copy of ‘The Collected Works of AJ Fikry’ by Gabrielle Zevin both that I got for a hundred and fifty rupees. Both these titles seemed to be book related and I was glad I found them. 

 

The last title was another book that I want to read to improve my writing. I found a beautiful copy of “The Random House Handbook’ by Frederick Crews. In the introduction it says that it is for ‘student writers’ and though I am no student I want to learn to write which was reason enough to buy it. There’s one seller in Abids who tells me to give whatever I want to pay for it instead of quoting me a price. So I paid him a hundred rupees for this title and he seemed satisfied. 

The Sunday Haul (on 21-07-2024)

 It’s been raining on and off since a couple of days last week and on Saturday it rained all day in Hyderabad. On Sunday luckily it stopped raining in the morning but the clouds in the sky appeared as if they would bring rain any time. After some hesitation whether to go to Abids or not I set out thinking I would return it if it started raining. 

 

Unlike every Sunday when I check out the sellers at Chikkadpally on the way home last Sunday I began by dropping in at Chikkadpally on the way to Abids. I had seen a book on Telugu proverbs that I did not buy the previous Sunday and now wanted to buy it. Unfortunately, the seller informed that it was bought by someone the previous Sunday itself. I was disappointed but when I saw a nice copy of ‘The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat’ by Oliver Sacks my moods improved and I picked up this title that I had been meaning to read. I had found Oliver Sacks’ ‘Musicophilia’ a long time ago on a visit to Delhi and wanted to read more of his books. 

Then I headed for Abids where I found very few sellers as they seemed to have decided not to put their books fearing it would rain. However, I managed to find a copy of ‘Jaffna Street’ by Mir Khalid that I bought for eighty rupees.