Puffin Classics: The Burmese Box [Paperback] Majumdar, Lila; Banerjee, Srilata and Sen Gupta, Subhadra

I am extremely fond of Lila Majumdar & enjoy almost all that she wrote. This edition has 2 novellas, "The Burmese Box" ( Podipishir Bormi baaksho) & Goopy's Secret Diary (Gupir gupto khata). I have so far read the 1st, & might change the rating to 5 stars if I like the 2nd. Srilata Banerjee's translation is beautiful. It is easy & smooth to read, & she has managed to retain the "quirkiness" of the original, which really sets the mood in most Lila Majumdar's fiction. I do feel that the uniquely Bengali words (relations & foods & the like) could have been either explained in a simple line, or the hindi word been used instead, for better "connect" of the all-Indian reader, as it is after all the purpose of the book. I also feel that despite the awesome translation, the story would be mostly lost on a child from another country, owing to it's uniquely Indian "summer vacation at Mama's house" flavour being quite impossible to convey to a cultural outsider. Overall, immensely enjoyable. It is a treat for those who have read the original too.(I was kind of demoralized reading the other review, esp. as the reviewer seemed to be reviewing English translations of popular Bengali reads. But I am happy to report that I am satisfied with "The Burmese Box")

Good read. I have read this in Bengali when I was a kid. Purchased this book for my kid. A bit difficult for her now but she was interested in the storyline. The translation is fine.

It was a very boring book. There were 2 stories. I didn't understand half of the second story.