Galpamala 8 by Narendra Nath Mitra [Hardcover]

Short stories are a pride of Bengali literature, and Narendra Nath Mitra is one of its most distinguished masters. Renowned literary critic Abu Sayeed Ayub once described one of his stories as having "risen to the ranks of the world's greatest short stories." Contemporary writer Santosh Kumar Ghosh placed him alongside Maupassant, O. Henry, Chekhov, and Rabindranath Tagore. Scholar Amlan Dutta even asserted that "without Narendra Nath Mitra, our everyday life would be incomplete—he teaches us how to live." Indeed, Narendra Nath Mitra secured his place in Bengali short fiction long ago. From the very beginning of his writing career, he established his unique style and continued for over four decades, crafting more than five hundred stories. His works, deeply rooted in contemporary life, transcend time to remain eternally relevant. Unfortunately, many of his short story collections had been out of print for years, and numerous unpublished stories remained undiscovered. Yet, his works are constantly sought after by devoted readers, researchers, and filmmakers. To address this demand, Galpomala, an ongoing series, has been publishing volumes of his stories. This eighth volume follows the previous seven, bringing together seventy-five nearly forgotten yet unforgettable stories—each a testament to Mitra’s mastery and literary brilliance. Like the earlier volumes, the stories in this collection are arranged chronologically according to their time of writing. At the end of each story, the date of composition is mentioned, along with information about the first publication in newspapers or magazines. Editor Abhijit Mitra's introduction also provides valuable contextual insights into the collected works, adding further depth to this remarkable anthology.