Literary Club Activity: National Book Lovers' Day 2025
The Literary Club of the Department of B.Ed. Loreto College organised a cosy afternoon for readers to explore and recollect their fond reading memories on the occasion of National Book Lover's Day. This intimate gathering was filled with enthusiastic minds and imaginative souls, taking a tour of some of their favourite reading journeys.
Pratyusha Mitra came forward with a copy of André Aciman's Call Me By Your Name and dived deep into her heartwarming experience. Like most people, she was familiar with the film adaptation by Luca Guadagnino and at once decided to take up the book to get more out of her viewing. She expressed how the book solidified the emotion of Love, stripping away constructs like gender, and how her meet-and-greet with the author himself left a deep impact.
Books are ageless, and so are readers, fully capable of exploration at any age. Mehr Bhattacharya's favourite book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, brought smiles to the whole gathering as everyone took the nostalgia train to Hogwarts. This book was her escape from the mundane for someone who felt different among the crowd. She resonated with the characters and thought of herself as someone with magical abilities. Books have always been her repose, away from a world that can be mean to a child in many ways. However, books have always given her newer worlds to fall in love with and to break free of a stifling life.
Shreosi Goswami brought in a personal connection in introducing The Clutching Sequins, a collection of life experiences of her close friend from college days, Rajlaxmi Dash. It is a recollection of significant moments of Dash's life, both the good and the bad. Rajlaxmi was the first person to dedicate a writing to her, and she quoted "gifting you a piece of my heart, make sure you keep it safe".
A short story enthusiast was seen in Zainab Rahi as she expressed her overwhelming love for Katherine Mansfield. Growing up as a literature major, she was slightly insecure about the quantity of her reading and knowledge compared to others. However, she never let competition take over her passion. She spoke about embracing Mansfield, who has redefined the short story as a genre. Zainab's first story was Bliss, and her latest prized possession was a copy of A Dill Pickle. She was overjoyed at being able to pursue a Master's in literature due to the scope of reading that it offered. Zainab is someone who has beautifully navigated the path of her passion as a reader amidst the stress of academics.
The last speaker, Ramsha Habib, is a proud explorer and experimenter when it comes to books. She recounted picking up The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid at an "all you can pack in a box" bookfair. Not knowing what lay ahead, she dived into the book and let it astound her. With Chengis as the protagonist, the book depicted the struggles of the character's journey through different spaces and the insecurities that cropped up in him due to several surrounding conflicts. A curious reader like Ramsha, recommended the readers present to let the books choose them and to get carried away by the sudden beauty they have to offer.
The session was full to the brim with such wonderful experiences, which enlightened the readers to take up new books and begin another exhilarating journey. The variety of books, authors and readers emphasised the love of reading and the place of books in a person's life. Truly, books are our best friends, and with this conclusion, the club President, Shreyasi Das Roy, delivered her vote of thanks and appreciation for the participation and enthusiasm displayed by the hearty readers.
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