Rusty Comes Home: Signed As Rusty Vol 5

Rusty returns to his beloved hills; never to leave again

Rusty Comes Home is the fifth and final volume in Puffin's complete collection of Ruskin Bond's ever-popular Rusty stories. A lonely and sensitive boy who lost his father early; Rusty spent his childhood in boarding schools and with relatives in Dehra. While still a teenager; he ran away from his foster home and had myriad adventures before landing up in London with the ambition of becoming a writer. This book chronicles Rusty's exploits after his return from London; as he explores Delhi; Dehra and the small; dusty town of Shahganj before settling down in Mussoorie; making his living as a writer; and revelling in the hills that have always fascinated him.

Rusty Comes Home contains some captivating stories about Rusty's friends and fleeting acquaintances; about human nature and the supernatural. Among his friends in Shahganj are Ketan; a victim of the Partition and prone to paralytic fits; Madhu; a child whose life is tragically cut short; but not before she leaves an indelible impression on Rusty; and Suresh; a disabled child with whom Rusty strikes up a close bond. In Dehra he meets up with his genial Uncle Bill; who makes it his habit to poison people with arsenic; the incredible Jimmy; a jinn who can extend his arms at will to infinite lengths; and Miss Pettibone; the oldest resident of Dehra; who enthralls him with riveting stories from the town's past. Then there is the unnamed basket-selling girl he meets by chance on the Deoli railway platform and can never forget; and Binya; a young and vivacious widow; who floats into his life on the strains of a song.

Full of charming and idiosyncratic characters; these stories of love; loss and adventure will appeal to young readers of all ages.