"The Blue House" Taken from the first flap of the book: The stories in this volume are a fraction of the several stories that Jharna Das Purkayastha has written over the past twenty years. Together they reveal the changing society of Bangladesh as it moves rapidly into a globalized and urbanized world, and old ways and values give way before new ones. Strong family ties weaken; the elderly grow out of touch with the younger generation; the gap between the haves and the have-nots seems to be increasing. The stories reflect a humanist perspective; both men and women can be victims of social injustice. However, a few stories focus on the situation of women in an unequal world, where old customs and mores persist, denying women the equality that is their due. The characters in the stories are drawn from both the Muslim and. Hindu communities, thus giving readers a holistic view into contemporary Bangladesh. Though many of the stories are painful, they are essential reading for those who would like a true portrait of Bangladesh from the perspective of a sensitive writer.