By OUR STAFF REPORTER
Dehradun, 19 May: Vivek Atray, Author, Motivational Speaker and ex-IAS officer, today addressed a gathering of book lovers about his 5th book, ‘The Middle of Everything’. The literary event was held at the Press Club, Dehradun.
The Middle of Everything by Vivek Atray is a book that exemplifies all that is cheerful and peppy in life. It is a collection of middles (short humorous or inspirational pieces) published in the editorial pages of leading newspapers.
Atray while speaking about the book said, “The Middle of Everything is a collection of my middles (short humorous or inspirational pieces), most of which have been published in the editorial pages of the Times of India, the Hindustan Times and the Tribune, over the years. This collection is a happy ensemble of some of my earliest, some of my latest, and most of my truly satisfying, writings. A middle usually nourishes the author’s soul more than the reader, but some of these writings have luckily received the gushing love of discerning and affectionate readers, even if only intermittently. Middles are a joy to write, they present flavours to savour and they should ideally elicit either a smile or a tear.”
The topics contained herein are about as diverse as any book can hope to offer, even though several authors have essayed more memorable middles in the past. One might add, very humbly, that, from absentmindedness to mistaken identities, from maids to maestros, from families to buddies, and from no-hopers to champions, several aspects of human lives and habit patterns have grabbed the attention of this author’s keen eye and his eager pen, or his keyboard.
“Writing for the love of it is a much unfashionable form of expression these days. I truly do feel that millions more could, or could have, metamorphosed themselves into being writers. They could then have journeyed through life with some tonic for their souls, no matter how compelling the nature of their significant or extraneous challenges as human beings. In any case, it is a matter of utmost joy and delight for an author to behold his book in his hands. This being my fifth, I feel truly blessed,” Atray added.
Atray thanked Amit Garg and the alumni of NIT Kurukshetra who are based in Dehradun, for the event.
“The Middle of Everything is a major landmark in my life, and it encapsulates many dimensions of life itself,” Atray added. The Middle of Everything will hopefully calm and even charm many a reader, he concluded.
