Synopsis Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhaya (1894-1950) the most important fiction writer in Bengali literature after Rabindranath Tagore and Sarat Chandra, and remembered best for his Apu novels, wrote innumerable tales and short stories. The selection of stories in the present volume, introduced by the writer's grandson, Tathagata Banerjee, are some of the finest examples of his story telling, chosen for their excellence as works of imagination rather than any theoretical interest. The brilliance of Bibhutibhushan's stories lies in the range and multiplicity of his interests; his preoccupation with a whole universe of human beings working out their destinies amidst the circumstances in which they are placed; in the breadth of his sympathies which make even the ordinary, everyday life take on the feel of human experience; in the intimacy he invites among his readers, by his manner of telling, in sharing the author's reflections and sentiments. For these and for the feeling of sheer wonder the stories evoke, Bibhutibhushan has remained one of the most well-known and best loved writer of our times.