Himalayas – No Time to Think

Indian author’s new book is finding its way back home to the Himalayas

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A STUNNING debut book of poetry and prose published two weeks ago is now finding its way back home to a small hill fort town in the Himalayas.

Don’t Look Down by first-time author Ritambhara Chowfin was penned in the town of Almora in the Himalayan foothills of northern India.

But it was edited and published in England and printed in Poland!

Now the first few copies are finding their way back to Almora’s two public libraries and the town’s English speaking journal The Uttaranchal Deep Newspaper.

Don’t Look Down was first published on 6^th October in both paperback and e-book and with burgeoning worldwide sales the first press release has been read by more than 10,000 people in places as diverse as Canada, Germany, the UAE, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, the Netherlands and the USA, as well as hundreds more the UK and India.

Ritambhara is a 25-year-old graduate in English Language and Literature from Amity University in Delhi. She is the eldest of three siblings and returned to her home town for the inspiration to write about the world she knows.

Ritambhara says she is overwhelmed by the “amazing and lovely reaction to my book.”

“Although Hindi is my first language, I love English and the UK,” she adds. “The whole process of writing and watching my book being published has been a total joy.

“And now the reaction from friends, family and even former teachers has taken my breath away.”

Editor and publisher Nic Outterside, who owns the publishing house Time is an Ocean says: “Working with Ritambhara has been an utter pleasure.

“I am very proud of this book, and of her. The worldwide reaction to her book has been amazing.”

Don’t Look Down is available in paperback priced at £4.99 (US $6.15) from most Amazon portals

www.amazon.co.uk/Dont-Look-Down-Ritambhara-Chowfin/dp/1698038674/

www.amazon.com/Dont-Look-Down-Ritambhara-Chowfin/dp/1698038674/

A Kindle e-book edition of Don’t Look Down is also available for £1.99 (US$2.45) (174IR) from all Amazon portals

www.amazon.co.uk/Dont-Look-Down-Ritambhara-Chowfin-ebook/dp/B07YVH8WS3/

www.amazon.com/dp/B07YVH8WS3/

www.amazon.in/dp/B07YVH8WS3

New book of shared humanity written in the Himalayas and edited in England

A sensational debut book of poetry and prose is published worldwide this week despite its writer and editor living 5,000 miles apart.

Don’t Look Down by first-time author Ritambhara Chowfin was entirely penned in the small hill fort town of Almora, some 5,400ft above sea level in the Himalayan foothills in northern India.

It has been edited and published by award winning editor Nic Outterside in Wolverhampton in the English west Midlands.

This transcendent work forms part of a personal journey out of darkness and into light, where love and theft are in constant conflict.

Within Don’t Look Down readers will find the thoughts and poetic musings of a young Indian woman born and raised in a part of the planet visited by very few others.

The leopards growling in the forest, the black bear snuffling among the lush vegetation, an old witch casting a spell for childbirth and the tall cedars and pines swaying in the lashing rain, may be a world away from the one you inhabit.

But this young woman is exactly like anyone else, whether they live in New York, London, Cairo, Buenos Aires, Lagos or Melbourne.

She has the same fears, the same loves, the same faults, the same frailties, the same hopes, the same passions and the same emotions; and these all come tumbling out in her poetry and prose.

Like everyone else she is human, and is trying to make sense of her life and this world.

Don’t Look Down is her first published book.

“Although Hindi is my first language, I love English and the UK,” she says.

“I have relations in Warrington and my dream is one day to visit them.

“I reached out to Nic earlier this year as we both had dealings with a story-teller in my town and I knew him to be a brilliant editor. He agreed immediately to edit and publish my first book. And the whole process has been a joy.”

Nic, who owns the publishing house Time is an Ocean says: “Working with Ritambhara has been an utter pleasure. Her writing is so deeply filled with emotion and her use of English is stunning.

“I am very proud of this book, and of her. It is amazing what can be achieved across 5,000 miles by email, WhatsApp and Instagram,” he added.

“The added bonus is I now consider Ritambhara as a very close friend.”