"It was a wonderful experience interacting with you and appreciate the way you have planned and executed the whole publication process within the agreed timelines.”
Subrat SaurabhAuthor of Kuch Woh PalHave you ever wondered how wonderful the world of Academia is? How fascinating are its multifarious facets? It encompasses the whole gamut of dos and don’ts of human life. The ideas and ideals, the inspirations and desperations, the idiosyncrasies and the irrepressible humour, the intrigue and the conspiracies, the rat race and the one-upmanship, the conflict between west and east, vernacular versus foreign languages, the rustic versus the urbane, the ragging and the highhandedness of the seniors, the insipid food of the canteen and occasional Dhaba food, the proxy and skipping classes, the slang and the jargon, the imitation of professors and limitations of lectures, debates and doodling in the class and what not. In fact the academy is a microcosm of life and its nuances.
No wonder, academy touches our life so closely and becomes an integral part of our life. Its walls, its corridor, the class rooms and above all the teachers are all etched in our memory. Some are bitter, some are cheerful, yet all are long-lasting.
When such memories become the backdrop of a novel, it becomes highly readable. It recreates the bygone days. We try to discover ourselves in the characters. The amalgamation of imagination and imitation of life makes them quite absorbing and interesting.
This book looks into five such novels from different eras and unravels how academy has been depicted over the ages. Its pages would help you to relive your college days and at the same time enliven your life!
Namrata Behera
Namrata Behera teaches English language and literature to graduate students of Utkal University in Bhubaneswar. She also takes classes on communicative English in different institutions in and around Bhubaneswar. Besides teaching, she contributes to a number of online journals as a freelancer. A number of research articles written by her have also been published in national and international journals. She has done her PhD in English Literature under Prof. Jatindra Nayak, an eminent professor, a noted writer and much sought after columnist.
A first class student throughout, she did her post-graduation from Sambalpur University in the year 2005 with a first division and secured 3rd position in the university. Cool and composed, she spends her spare time in strolling in the spacious Indira Gandhi Park, adjacent to her residence, along with her six year old son, Som.
Born in a family of teachers, teaching and writing are her passions and academy, her obsession. Despite its drudgery and demerits, she finds the academia absorbing and fascinating for churning new ideas and refreshing visions.
