Itanagar: A novel titled “Beyond the Frozen Hills” by Arunachal Pradesh Civil Service officer Miranda Pertin was launched at a function in Naharlagun on Sunday.
Published by Notion Press, the book is about the relationship between two sisters and their aunt. The book also talks about a world of another species of hominoids, who live amidst humans in a hidden form.
The hominoids symbolise the Yeti, the abominable mountain man or Gretpu, as the Monpa community call them.
It is a poignant story about a young girl set in Tawang, mostly in a place called Lashikhe in the Himalayas. At the core of the book are humanity and the environment.
Launching the book, eminent writer Yeshe Dorjee Thongchi said Arunachal is a treasure house of stories, as different tribes have myriad customs that are rarely found anywhere else in the world. He appealed to the new writers to write about the state.
Thongchi pointed out how Pertin has brought out the materialistic and artificial lives the humans are living compared to mythical men of another world, and the untold miseries women have to suffer in our society.
“The novel is heart-touching. I hope there will be more magic realism books from authors in Arunachal,” he said.
Poet-author Mamang Dai said: “All writings are a journey, going in and out. Writing is social reformation, but there is responsibility involved,” she said, calling for defending the freedom of speech and expression.
Sharing her book journey, Pertin said she came across a mythical yeti story at Lhou village in Tawang, where she drew her inspiration to write the book. “It was a meditative and auto-pilot mode experience without causing any stress. I gave my heart and soul to the book,” she said.
She urged the people to read more local authors to help the state literary society flourish.
Retired IAS officer and father of the author, Makbul Pertin expressed happiness over the launching of his daughter’s book and wished more books would come in the days to come from her.
Arunachal Pradesh Literary Society general secretary Mukul Pathak and writers Jamuna Bini and Yumlam Tana also spoke on the occasion.
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