₹300
Middles are life in miniature. The middles in the book, ‘In the Middle’ by Vandana Kumari Jena are a diverse collection, depicting a kaleidoscope of rainbow hued images. At times they are pen portraits of ordinary people who led extraordinary lives, like the man who wanted to make it to the Guinness Book of Records because of the size of his moustache. At other times they are a globetrotter’s delight and sketch picture post cards of exotic locales, the starkly beautiful Kosovo, the mesmerising Marrakech, the amazing Queens town or the exotic Istanbul. Many a time they provide a glimpse of the lighter side of life. Each one of them, in its own way, celebrates the very essence of life.
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| Contents | |
| Preface —Pgs. 7 | 50. Sorrow Behind the Smile —Pgs. 133 |
| OFFICE-OFFICE | 51. Above Board —Pgs. 135 |
| 1. Suspicious Spouses —Pgs. 17 | 52. Educating Meena —Pgs. 137 |
| 2. A Small Price —Pgs. 19 | 53. Writer’s Bluff —Pgs. 140 |
| 3. Suspended Animation —Pgs. 21 | 54. My Son Only Sold Drugs —Pgs. 142 |
| 4. Made for Each Other —Pgs. 23 | 55. The Confirmed Bachelor —Pgs. 144 |
| 5. Murder on the Menu —Pgs. 25 | 56. Rozi’s Roti —Pgs. 146 |
| 6. Perkless in Delhi —Pgs. 28 | 57. The Musical Ride —Pgs. 148 |
| 7. Adventures of Snoopy —Pgs. 30 | 58. Sinner Turned Saint —Pgs. 150 |
| 8. Behind Every Bureaucrat —Pgs. 32 | 59. Amma —Pgs. 152 |
| 9. Rank Injustice —Pgs. 34 | 60. The Way of the Misogynist —Pgs. 154 |
| 10. Lessons of Empowerment —Pgs. 36 | 61. The Great Betrayal —Pgs. 156 |
| 11. An Oasis of Warmth —Pgs. 38 | 62. The Bird of Passage —Pgs. 158 |
| 12. Games Bureaucrats Play —Pgs. 41 | 63. Proof of the Pudding —Pgs. 160 |
| 13. Innocence Abroad is Expensive —Pgs. 43 | 64. From Penury Rescued —Pgs. 162 |
| 14. A Commoner’s Tale —Pgs. 45 | 65. To Sir, With Love —Pgs. 164 |
| 15. A Bone to Pick —Pgs. 48 | 66. Standing Tall —Pgs. 167 |
| 16. Can’t Marry by Proxy —Pgs. 50 | THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME |
| 17. One Man’s Snake —Pgs. 52 | 67. The Ides of March —Pgs. 171 |
| 18. The Champion of Women —Pgs. 54 | 68. Storm in A Teacup —Pgs. 173 |
| 19. The Tea-test —Pgs. 56 | 69. Cross of the Kayasthas —Pgs. 176 |
| 20. Our Literacy Heroes —Pgs. 58 | 70. Slim Hope —Pgs. 179 |
| MID-PLEASURES AND PALACES | 71. Man Proposes —Pgs. 181 |
| 21. Identity Crisis —Pgs. 63 | 72. A Tale of Two Lenses —Pgs. 183 |
| 22. Travel Guide for Dummies —Pgs. 65 | 73. Monsoon Wedding —Pgs. 185 |
| 23. Train to Stafford —Pgs. 67 | 74. Test Partner —Pgs. 187 |
| 24. From Russia with Love —Pgs. 69 | 75. Memory Plus —Pgs. 189 |
| 25. Meat the Challenge —Pgs. 71 | 76. My Cup of Tea —Pgs. 191 |
| 26. Follow the Globetrotter —Pgs. 73 | 77. Flight to Freedom —Pgs. 193 |
| 27. China’s Closed Door —Pgs. 76 | 78. To Trap A Mouse —Pgs. 195 |
| 28. Travails of Travelling —Pgs. 78 | 79. Crippled Dignity —Pgs. 197 |
| 29. Sweet Charity —Pgs. 81 | 80. Travails of Transfer —Pgs. 199 |
| 30. Down The Garden Path —Pgs. 83 | 81. The X-ray Machine —Pgs. 202 |
| 31. Philo Sophomore —Pgs. 85 | 82. The Master-Key —Pgs. 205 |
| 32. To Die For —Pgs. 87 | 83. Nostalgia for Nanny —Pgs. 208 |
| 33. Sweet Memories of Kosovo —Pgs. 89 | 84. Return to Fantasia —Pgs. 210 |
| 34. Meating West —Pgs. 92 | 85. When Summer Comes —Pgs. 212 |
| 35. Doing the Unexpected —Pgs. 94 | 86. Turning a Deaf Ear —Pgs. 214 |
| 36. Lessons in love —Pgs. 97 | 87. Cranes are Plying —Pgs. 216 |
| 37. From Zero to Infinity —Pgs. 100 | 88. From Riches to Rags —Pgs. 218 |
| 38. August Moon Festival —Pgs. 102 | 89. A Question of Space —Pgs. 220 |
| 39. Strange And Sublime: A Cordon Bleu’s Blues —Pgs. 104 | 90. Learning to Make Music —Pgs. 223 |
| 40. The Shopper’s Paradise —Pgs. 106 | 91. Simile of the Ape —Pgs. 225 |
| 41. My Friend Ebru —Pgs. 109 | 92. A Cook for All Reasons —Pgs. 227 |
| 42. Getting to Waterloo —Pgs. 111 | 93. Reptilian Ramble —Pgs. 230 |
| 43. Chocolates are Forever —Pgs. 114 | 94. Good Riddance —Pgs. 233 |
| 44. Memories of York —Pgs. 117 | 95. All in the Game —Pgs. 235 |
| OF HEROES AND ANTI-HEROES | 96. The Faux Pas —Pgs. 237 |
| 45. The Interview —Pgs. 121 | 97. The Brown Man’s Burden —Pgs. 239 |
| 46. Sleight of Hand —Pgs. 124 | 98. The Undistributed Middle —Pgs. 241 |
| 47. Economical with the Truth —Pgs. 126 | 99. New Year Resolutions —Pgs. 243 |
| 48. Man Behind the Moustache —Pgs. 128 | 100. Natural Absent-mindedness —Pgs. 245 |
| 49. Your House is My House —Pgs. 131 |
Vandana Kumari Jena is an officer of the 1979 batch of the Indian Administrative Service. She belongs to the Odisha cadre. She writes middles, novels, short stories and poetry. Her stories and poems have been published in over twenty anthologies. Her first novel ‘The Dance of Death’ was published in 2008. Her collection of short stories entitled ‘The Incubation Chamber’ was published in 2014. Another collection of short stories entitled ‘The Future is Mine’ was published in 2015. She is married with two sons. She lives in New Delhi.
