Class 9th Eng. Ch-2“ The The Adventures Of Toto” by Ruskin Bond (Supplimentary)Summary, Theme, Message NCERT/CBSE Based Question and answers,

Ch-2

The Adventures of Toto

-Ruskin Bond 

Introduction of the Author

Ruskin Bond (born 19 May, 1934) is an Indian author of British descent, living in Mussoorie, India. He tried his hand in different genres like fiction, short stories, novella, essays and books for children. His popular works are The Cherry Tree, The Blue Umbrella, Angry River, Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra, A Crow For All The Seasons, etc. He is a master craftsman who deals with child psychology and children related issues with deftness. The Indian Council for Child Education has recognised his role in the growth of children's literature in India. He got the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1992, the Padma Shri in 1999 and Padma Bhushan in 2014

Summary of the Chapter

Monkey at Narrator's Home

It is a story about a baby monkey. The narrator's grandfather was a lover of animals and had a private zoo. One day, he purchased a baby monkey from a tonga-driver by paying five rupees and kept it in his zoo. It was named Toto. It was a pretty monkey that would enjoy teasing people. He had bright and mischievous eyes. He had white teeth with which he used to frighten people. His hands looked dried up. He had quick fingers and a tail which he used as his third hand.

Toto in Narrator's Bedroom

Narrator's grandmother was uncomfortable with the presence of so many pets in the house. So Toto's cute presence had to be kept a secret from her. He was put in a closet opening into the wall of narrator's bedroom and was tied to a hook fastened into the wall. However, the naughty monkey started to show his true colours as he did not stay there for long. He freed himself by pulling out the hook and tore the wallpaper of the bedroom. He also tore the narrator's school blazer in shreds. Grandfather was a cool person and was very fond of Toto. So, he did not consider the destruction caused by Toto as a loss. He commented that Toto was so clever that if he got more time, he might have made a rope with the torn pieces of the blazer and used it to escape from the window.

Toto and Other Animals

Now, Toto was put in a big cage in the servants' quarters where a squirrel, a tortoise, a pair of rabbits and a pet goat were already living peacefully. But Toto troubled all the animals at night and did not let them sleep.

Toto in Saharanpur

One day, Grandfather decided to take him to Saharanpur where he had to go to collect his pension. It was decided to use a big black canvas kit-bag to carry Toto during this journey. It was made comfortable for sitting by putting some straw at the bottom of the bag. The bag was so strong that Toto could not escape or get his hands out. So, whenever he made an attempt to come out of the bag, he could only make it roll about on the floor and jump with it into the air. This behaviour of the monkey inside the bag attracted the attention of onlookers at the Dehra Dun platform. When Grandfather was asked to show his ticket in Saharanpur, Toto suddenly poked his head out of the bag and grinned at the ticket- collector. The collector got a shock and asked Grandfather to pay for the animal. The ticket- collector annoyed Grandfather by referring to the monkey as a dog. He tried to convince the collector that it was not a dog but a monkey. But ultimately he had to pay three rupees as fare for Toto. Being irritated, he took out his pet tortoise from his pocket and asked the collector to charge for it as well. The ticket-collector inspected the tortoise closely and said that there were no charges to be paid as the pet was not a dog.

Toto's Love of Hot-water

Finally, Toto was accepted by the narrator's grandmother. He was given a space to stay in the stable along with family donkey, Nana. However, on the very first night of his stay, Toto dangled on to the donkey's ears with his sharp teeth and disturbed and irritated him. They never became friends. Toto used to love hot water baths in winters. When grandmother gave him a large bowl of warm water to bathe in, he would first test its temperature with his hand. Then he would step into it slowly by putting one foot inside after the other. He would sit comfortably with water up to his neck and soap himself. When the water would cool down, he would run swiftly and reach the kitchen fire to dry himself. He was so sensitive that if anybody laughed at him during this, he would get hurt and refused to bathe.

One day, Toto almost boiled himself alive while trying to take a bath. In the kitchen, there was a large kettle left on the fire to boil for tea. He removed its lid and found the water warm enough for a bath. He got in with his head sticking out from the open kettle. When the water began to boil, Toto raised himself up to avoid the burning sensation but sat down again since it was cold outside. He kept doing this until Grandmother came and took him out from the kettle.

Toto and the Plate of Rice

Toto's mischiefs continued. One day, he was caught stuffing himself with rice laid at the table at lunch-time. Grandmother shouted at him when she saw this. Toto threw a plate at her. Then he threw a glass of water on the face of one of the aunts who tried to get him away. On Grandfather's arrival, Toto picked up the dish and sat on the branches of the jackfruit tree. He stayed up the tree all afternoon, eating the rice slowly till he finished all the rice. Then he threw the dish from the tree thus breaking it into pieces. The family realised that such a creature cannot be kept as a pet for long. Therefore, Grandfather sold him back to the tonga-driver for three rupees .

Ch-1 The Lost Child- Summary 

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Ch-1 The Lost Child Q/A

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