R.K. Narayan obtained his bachelor’s degree from Mysore University and devoted almost whole life as a writer. He started by writing short stories which appeared in The Hindu’; and he also worked as a Mysore Correspondent of Justice’, a newspaper from Madras.

Narayan is the true master of humour, irony, realism, romance and artistry. His stories are set in South India where like Thomas Hardy’s Wessel; he created a famous town of Algoid. Some critics, however, hold that he lacks true pathos, genuine depth of feeling, realistic description of poverty and misery-the element which make a novelist really great.

Narayan accepts the social system prevailing in the country and portrays it realistically without making an attempt to castigate the ills of the society. He deals with the middle class which he knows very intimately, as also the plight of the underdog. It is sad that he makes no attempt to present India in an exotic light for the sake of foreign readers.

Works of R.K. Narayan

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(a) Novels :

1. Swami and Friends (1935)

2. Bachelor of Art (1973)

3. The Dark Room (1938)

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4. The English Teacher (1945)

5. The Guide (1958)

6. The Painter of Signs (1976)

(b) Story Collections :

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1. Malgudi Days

2. Dodu and Other Stories

3. Cyclone and Other Stories

4. Gods, Demons and Others (1964)

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(c) Autobiography :

1. My Days (1974)

2. My Dateless Diary (1960)

(d) Other Works :

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1. Ramayana. It is an English version of the Tamil epic by Kamban.

2. The Emerald Route (1978), It is a travelogue wherein his younger brother R.K. Laxman, the famous cartoonist, has given the sketches.