HIMALAYAN TEAGARDEN

by David Wilson Fletcher ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 1956

Life as an overseer at Chungtung in Sikkim, bordered by Tibet and Nepal, is reported by an Englishman who found the beauties of the Himalayas and the pleasure his family took in the life ample compensation for the responsibilities he held. As a sahib, he enforced sternness toward the coolies who would stray without it, practised, forbearance and patience in seeing to their rights and wants in an unself deceived paternalism. There are the acts expected of authority -- the leopard hunt, the snake killing, the wedding attendance. Domestic incidents provide encounters with wandering lamas, Christmas carollers from over the mountain trained by a missionary, eneres enchanted by the little blond daughters. The retirement of the burra sahib emphasizes the love of the mountain life. The final incident in the book ends out on the road as Diwali and a car disaster occur simultaneously. Offbanded, at times effective, this offers a rather different view than that of the American one; of a situation tinged with colonialism.

Pub Date: March 16, 1956

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Crowell

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1956

Categories: NONFICTION