Contents
Story 1 — The Flowerpot by the Window 1
Story 2 — The Leave Application 6
Story 3 — The Letter That Arrived Late 12
Story 4 — After the Rain Stopped 18
Story 5 — The Evening Bus 24
Story 6 — The Empty Bed 31
Story 7 — Pension Day 38
Story 8 — Two Letters 48
Story 9 — The Day the Key Was Handed Over 56
Story 10 — Two Cups of Tea 66
Story 11 — Across the Road 73
Story 12 — Notice of Name Removal 80
Story 13 — The Last Page of the Notebook 87
Story 14 — The Dried Mango Branch 95
Story 15 — The Unemployed Afternoon 101
Story 16 — No Call Came 107
Story 17 — A Small Award 113
Story 18 — The New Neighbours 120
Story 19 — The Creak of the Chair 128
Story 20 — Seven in the Morning 135
Story 21 — Two Tickets 144
Story 22 — The Bangle Box 148
Story 23 — One Rupee Short 152
Story 24 — Photo Studio 157
Story 25 — The Red Sweater 163
Story 26 — The Key 169
Story 27 — Ten Minutes 174
Story 28 — The Last Customer 180
Story 29 — The Broken Clock 187
Story 30 — The Sweet Box 195
Story 31 — The Small Advertisement 200
Story 32 — The Blue Pen 207
Story 33 — The Wooden Horse 213
Story 34 — The Sewing Machine 221
Story 35 — A Pair of Shoes 228
Story 36 — The Lost Wallet 234
Story 37 — The Rented Room 240
Story 38 — The Nameless Parcel 246
Story 39 — Behind the Photograph 254
Story 40 — Two Lamps 263
Story 41 — The Last Row 270
Story 42 — Four Cubits of Cloth 276
Story 43 — Shared Shade 282
Story 44 — A Day's Leave 287
Story 45 — The Tin Trunk as Collateral 291
Story 46 — Half a Sack 298
Story 47 — The Other Door 305
Story 48 — Five Chairs 312
Story 49 — The Washerman’s Mark 319
Story 50 — Hours of Wages 325
Story 51 — The Red Seal 331
Story 52 — The Shared Ridge 338
Story 53 — A Plate of Rice 344
Story 54 — The Rented Cart 351
Story 55 — Three Glasses of Water 358
Story 56 — The Line for a Name 365
Story 57 — The Crop Sample 371
Story 58 — The Small Awning 378
Story 59 — The Bar of Soap 385
Story 60 — Outside the Accounts 392
Story 61 — The Wall’s Second Birth 400
Story 62 — Thread in Two Shades 407
Story 63 — The Orchard Path 413
Story 64 — The Nameless Picture 420
Story 65 — The Seven-Minute Voice 430
Story 66 — The Earthen Bowl 440
Story 67 — The Star on the Roof 452
Story 68 — The Thin Curtain 466
Story 69 — The Measure of Shade 478
Story 70 — The Lamps of Both Homes 491
Story 71 — The Veranda Lesson 503
Story 72 — The Name on the Toy’s Underside 514
Story 73 — The Broken Note 527
Story 74 — The River’s Other Name 538
Story 75 — Two Kinds of Seed 547
Story 76 — The Leaf Inside the Book 557
Story 77 — Shared Time on the Roof 567
Story 78 — The Unfinished Play 577
Story 79 — A Share of the Moon 589
Story 80 — The New Courtyard 597
Story 81 — The Thirty-First Bed 607
Story 82 — The Back Staircase 614
Story 83 — The Night Slip 620
Story 84 — Two Buttons 626
Story 85 — Rent for a Closed Window 632
Story 86 — The Brick Mark 639
Story 87 — The Pocket Ledger 646
Story 88 — The Evening Chair 653
Story 89 — The Fifth Bucket 659
Story 90 — The Discarded Identity Card 665
Story 91 — Half a Signature 671
Story 92 — The Locked Chest 679
Story 93 — Light for Rent 686
Story 94 — The Small Lock 698
Story 95 — Two Minutes Late 712
Story 96 — The Weighing of Wet Paddy 723
Story 97 — The Empty Plate 736
Story 98 — The Three-Rupee Receipt 747
Story 99 — The Last Light 758
Story 100 — Outside the Count 771