Man-eater of Malgudi, The (Modern Classi

Book excerpt: The Man-eater of Malgudi revolves around Nataraj, a mild-mannered owner of a small printing press, who leads a contented life with his circle of friends: a poet, a journalist, and Sastri, his assistant. One day, Vasu, a pugnacious taxidermist, moves into Nataraj's house, and soon begins to encroach on his life, scaring away his friends and customers. Nataraj is intimidated by Vasu, but when the taxidermist covets the beloved temple elephant to add to his collection of stuffed hyenas, tigers and pythons, Nataraj rises to the occasion.