Ghosh at Sea

The suave and serious Amitav Ghosh,a self-confessed lover of words,is never ever tongue-tied. But then,he is rarely accosted by a precocious moppet who has read a part of his book and wants to know more.

Visitors who packed Landmark bookstore for the Delhi launch of Ghosh’s latest book River of Smoke on Saturday,were in for a surprise when an eight-year-old asked the first question of the evening —“How much time did you take to finish the book?” For once,Ghosh,who can otherwise breeze through any question,looked taken aback,even amused at the child’s question. As the intellectuals,highbrow book lovers and readers at large chuckled,Ghosh responded with a counter-question. “Have you read the book?” “Yes,” came the answer. The little girl had indeed read a chapter of her father’s copy in Mauritius. Impressed,Ghosh answered,“One month,in addition to the time that went in research work.”