‘ I’ m thinking,’ said Romi, ‘ that even if the fire is out in a day or two, it will be a long time before the bridge is repaired. So it will be a nice long holiday from school!’ ‘ But you can walk across the river,’ said Teju. ‘ You just did it.’ ‘ Impossible,’ said Romi. ‘ It’ s much too swift.’ There is a sense of anticipation in the air, increasing as the clock slowly ticks on, each second seeming to last forever. The teacher’ s voice drones on in the background as you exchange another grin with your best friends, already planning your summer routine in detail in your head. And then the bell rings— that sweet sound of freedom— signalling that school is finally out! Revelling in the joy of this moment, School’ s Out! brings together a collection of Ruskin Bond’ s best children’ s stories, the perfect summer vacation read. Journey through streets and tunnels and forests, on tongas and trains and bicycles, with friends old and new, and make the most of the holidays through the delightful style of the writer on the hill. Ruskin Bond is known for his signature simplistic and witty writing style. He is the author of several bestselling short stories, novellas, collections, essays and children’ s books; and has contributed a number of poems and articles to various magazines and anthologies. At the age of 23, he won the prestigious John Llewellyn Rhys Prize for his first novel, The Room on the Roof. He was also the recipient of the Padma Shri in 1999, Lifetime Achievement Award by the Delhi Government in 2012 and the Padma Bhushan in 2014. Born in 1934, Ruskin Bond grew up in Jamnagar, Shimla, New Delhi and Dehrad