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Whispers in the Classroom, Voices in the Field — Stories of School, Friends and Life
Most of the learning that takes place in school is not limited to what you learn from your teachers but from your classmates, friends and bullies. They teach you lessons that guide you in later life. This centuries’ old institution that has stood the test of time, it must be doing something right. Whether you have fond memories or not so pleasant ones, you remember school days forever. Whispers in the Classroom, Voices in the Field- Stories of School, Friends and Life is a myriad collection of short stories related to school life. These stories by different authors covers a multitude of emotions. Edited by Richa Jha, this book also boasts of wonderful and relevant illustrations by Priya Kurian. With 31 writers like Paro Anand, Jerry Pinto, Ranjit Lal and the like, the book is a treat to read. As it rightly says on the front endpaper, "Schools bring you face-to-face with personal triumphs and failures, frictions and forgiveness, rivalry and teamwork, life-long friendships and heart-rending partings. And more. School, in short, is a complete life coach." Friends that you gain here are for life. It is only when you look back and share old memories, do you realise the importance of the time spent together in school. Some of the stories in this book move you to tears, others scare you and still others leave you wondering if what you did back then can be modified now. Some things never change. Every school worth its salt has a graveyard to boast or in the very least, a horror story and spirits that haunt the hallways. The Question by Vandana Singh has a girl who sees vision of her dead sister and a teacher who motivates his students to hunt for questions that he has already answered. Moving on by Deepa Aggarwal is based on a tussle between cousins and a spirit who takes full advantage of it. Goutam Dutta’s The Reunion has a ghost from the past who leaves the protagonist surprised to say the least. Comback by Trisha Ray has a ghost settling a score with a lot of vengeance. Stories like, No Mountain Too High, A Disobedient Girl and To Touch the Stars deal with the struggle it is for some to get a decent education. What we take for granted is not so for everyone. It is further compounded by the presence of bullies in school who will not let these less fortunate people be and make them as miserable as they possibly can. For others, school was the place where a teacher or someone else in a position of authority recognised their talent beneath the rough fa`E7ade and gave them a new chance at life. They called Her Fats and A Blurry Truth are stories of reinvention where children discover their hidden talent with help from their teachers. Once Upon a Time is set in the future but the basic issues that the students grapple with are the same. There are stories of repentance and remorse and how they changed the lives of those involved. The book is a great collection that covers all aspects of school life and is a trip down memory lane. It is made better by the inclusion of author’s notes at the end of each story. For some, literary leanings developed in school, while others hated it with aplomb while some have wonderful memories and made friends for life. The comic, School Daze, at the back of the book by Priya Kurian is the sherry on the cake- very well executed and hilarious.
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Anyone
who has been to school will agree that it is one of the most important
learning experiences of your life. It teaches you how to be resilient,
how to make friends, how to keep them for life and, among other thing,
imparts education.