Wild animals have now been kept separate from civilisation, and their habitats well demarcated from our human bricks and concrete realm. When some of them turn up in localities, people chase them with sticks, shoot at them. Every now and then, there is an incident of vicious illegal poaching, of elephant hides being scarred with boulders hurled at them, and dotted leopard skins pierced with sharp objects.
In this era where the intermingling of wild and tame, the dissolution of known and unknown, of civilised and uncivilised—has been so starkly condemned, Niyogi Books bring to us a set of stories by Olga Perovskaya (1902-1961), whose childhood had been spent in close contact with nature, and who had learnt to co-exist with the wild quite early. Perovskaya narrates incidents from her childhood, the bygone era where her family would often foster wild animals from the forest, and make them a part of their living. These animal cubs were very special pets, sometimes wolf cubs and sometimes deer fowls, tiger cubs and foxes included: all of which had become an integral part of her close-knit, yet inclusive family.
Through her stories, Perovskaya celebrates the innocence of animals, their loyalty and their age-old bond with humans. Compassionate and kind, these stories can take us back to our own childhood days, when life was scarce of responsibilities, and full of fun and festivity. The Wild sets foot into the junction of civilisation and untamed existence, and organically finds a place for itself within the minds and heart of humans.
Thus, harmony and symbiotic living: these are the two pillars that support these stories. Through the pure endearing love that emanates from the innocent narration, and through the liveliness that comes along because of the sheer adventurous tone of the book—‘Kids and Cubs’ could be an opportunity to live the colourful childhood days of the author, and rear within our hearts the feelings of kindness and tolerance.
Buy the book here !
Thanks to Niyogi Books for the book.
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