Soliloquy

I became a very big fan of AB de Villiers in 2013. The South African was keeping wickets for the Test team back then and I was doing the same for St Andrews and the Hyderabad Schoolboys. But it weren’t his graceful cover drives or brutal straight drives or the 180 degree swiveling scoop shot that drew me to him. I had read in an interview given by de Villiers in the magazine Sportstar in which he said that Jeffrey Archer was his favourite author. That one line probably changed my life and my respect for the former grew in leaps and bounds.

So off I went to our school’s library in search of Jeffrey Archer and after a half-hour of searching through names and dust-covered editions of the Hardy Boys, I ended up with my first Archer- oh yes, I will never forget that moment. It was ‘The Sins of the Father’ and as I opened it, the first line struck me.

“My name is Harry Clifton”
“Sure, and I’m Babe Ruth.”

I didn’t know who Harry Clifton was or Babe Ruth for that matter (until after some research I came to know that the latter was a very famous former American baseball player) but that first line told me that ‘The Sins of the Father’ was going to be an interesting read. I borrowed the book and finished it after just three days. Archer was gripping.

It was only much later that I found out that ‘The Sins of the Father’ was a part of a series called ‘The Clifton Chronicles’ and was in fact the second book of the chain. So after finishing ‘The Sins of the Father’ I went back and borrowed the first book of the series ‘Only Time Will Tell’ which turned out to be equally, if not more gripping. And thus, began my love affair with Jeffrey Archer.

The next three books in the series ‘Best Kept Secret’, ‘Be Careful What You Wish For’, ‘Mightier Than The Sword’ turned out to be equally good page-turners as Archer kept up with his reputation of being the best storyteller in the business. I was thrilled even though I had read Dickens, Austen, Hardy, Twain, Defoe and Stevenson before Archer, somehow they didn’t hold the same appeal as the latter did in my young mind.

It were in the last couple of books in ‘The Clifton Chronicles’ that Archer reached his zenith of storytelling. ‘Cometh The Hour’ began interestingly and ended with many lives held in balance. However, the last book in the series ‘This Was A Man’ was what made me realise that Archer is perhaps the greatest storyteller to have ever lived. I have loved Ken Follett, Ian Rankin, Graham Greene and Lee Child as well but they didn’t even come close to the impact Jeffrey Archer had had in my life.

I finished reading ‘This Was A Man’ on 13 May 2017 and I remember shedding a few tears in bed that night as I realised that Archer had produced his magnum opus and there may never be anything like this again. Although I rate his ‘Kane and Abel’ very highly in terms of storytelling and writing genius, ‘The Clifton Chronicles’ is what has made Archer what he is today. At age 77.

Jeffrey Archer taught me about life. He taught me about how one can maintain their integrity and still cope in these turbulent times. Archer taught me to never stop dreaming. If Harry from the backstreets of Bristol, Charlie from the East End of London and  Lubji from war-torn Poland could make it, why couldn’t I? Jeffrey Archer gave me the licence to think outside of the normal.

I will not forget Harry, Emma, Giles and Sebastian or Lady Virginia in a hurry just like I will not forget the monsoon of 2013 in which I discovered the God of storytelling and the way He changed my life. For changing my outlook in life, making me realise that nothing is more important than honesty and integrity, and the role you have had in making me your number one fan in the world, thank you, Lord Archer.

Oh and a big thank you to AB de Villiers as well!