The Ramayana (Penguin Books)

Rama was the eldest son of Dasharatha, the King of Ayodhya. When Rama came of age, Dasharatha wanted to hand over the reins of the kingdom to him, but his second wife Kaikeyi was jealous and wanted to make her son Bharata king.

She invoked two long-forgotten boons from Dasharatha, and forced him to exile Rama into the forests for fourteen years. Determined to stick to dharma and stay true to his father’s word, the noble Rama leaves Ayodhya with his wife Sita and his younger brother Lakshmana to live in the forests for fourteen years.

However, he draws the attention of the demonic lord of Lanka, the evil Ravana who desires to steal Sita for himself. Ravana hatches a plan and kidnaps Sita when Rama and Lakshmana are away. Rama is grief-stricken and begins to journey towards Lanka to fight Ravana for Sita’s pride. He will not have to go alone, for a band of the most curious monkeys decide to accompany him. And among them is the devout Hanuman, the son of the Wind God.

Hanuman will do anything to return Sita to Rama’s arms, and together they will bring a war to Ravana’s walls which will forever be remembered in history through the words of the mythic sage Valmiki.