'Wildest Imagination... and Beyond!'

Book: হরিপদ ও গেলিয়েন (Haripado and Galien)

Writer: Rajib Hasan

Genre: Novel-Fiction

Target Reader: Teenagers

Publisher: Prothoma Prokashon (Book Fair Stall#102 -105)

1st Published: February 2017

©: Sharmin Bithi

Dedicated to: The Real Life Superman – His Father

Cover & Illustration: Sadman Muntasir

Price: 200/- (At Book Fair: 150/-)

ISBN: 978-984-92403-3-4

If you are an Anjan Dutta fan, you would surely know 'Haripado Kerani' very well. If not, you may give a quick youtube search. Because, knowing that song will make this amazingly fun story even more fun to read.

Unlike the character Haripado in the song, this person has very few relatives and friends. His friends include a very sentimental ant- Pipli, a very knowledgable rat- Nepal, and an absentminded cockroach called Techu. He is also good friends with the world's happiest man Bhulu -- happiest because he has the worst memory ever!

As much as the story is about Haripado, it is also about a little girl Pori, who happens to be very ill. Haripado, the simplest man on earth, has no dreams or ambitions whatsoever, except for one- somebody would leave a briefcase full of cash on his hostel's doorstep for Pori's treatment. (Spoiler alert -- nothing as such happens!)

But what happens is way bigger than that. While commuting on a bus his friend ant and having chit-chat with his rat friend before going to bed, one fine morning he wakes up in a different room and in front of him stands an older man with thick specs. He looked like an older version of himself, maybe 40 years of age or more!

You should hear the rest of the story from Rajib Hasan – a writer with the smoothest and 'fatless' writing skills of this time. This book is definitely a page turner, so be sure to finish your homework for the day and keep some snacks by the side!

Anik Khan is a  Poet and Journalist.