Till today Sir Ruskin Bond is 90 years old  but he still writes by hand still writes by hand, preferring the trusty ballpoint pen, which he calls “the greatest invention"

Bond has authored more than 500 short stories, essays, and novels which includes 69 books for children. He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1992 for Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1999 and Padma Bhushan in 2014. 

His first novel, The Room on the Roof, published in 1956, received the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize. 

Ruskin was only 17 years old when he began writing The Room on the Roof. He lacked formal training or guidance in writing, and much of his style developed through trial and error. He had to rely solely on his passion for storytelling and his observations of life around him.

The novel was semi-autobiographical and reflected many of Ruskin's own experiences, including loneliness and the struggle to find his place in the world. Drawing from such personal feelings was both a strength and a challenge, as he had to confront his emotions while writing.

Like many young writers, Ruskin faced rejections from publishers. Convincing a publisher to take a chance on an unknown author with a debut novel wasn’t easy. 

It was during this period that he wrote his first novel, The Room on the Roof, inspired by his life in India as a teenager. The book was published in 1956 and won the prestigious John Llewellyn Rhys Prize, awarded to young writers from the Commonwealth. 

1.John Llewellyn Rhys Prize (1957) 

2.Sahitya Akademi Award (1992) 

3.Padma Shri (1999) 

4.Padma Bhushan (2014) 

5.Lifetime Achievement Award by the Chandigarh Literary Society (2017)