It's been a while since I read fantasy! I often find it hard to get into fantasy because of the detailed world-building that it demands. I think that's one of the reasons writing Uncontrollable in verse worked so well for me. In the same way that I don't get sucked into a fantastical world easily, I can't write complex worlds without it feeling like some kind of info dump!But of course, well written fantasy draws you in slowly. The Girl Who Drank the Moon was like that for me, as was The Last Windwitch. Even though much of it was predictable, I enjoyed the book and the way the story plays out, bringing together gentleness and wonder.Brida does not know much about her past. She knows that Mother Magdi, a powerful hedgewitch, took her in, but that's about all. And somehow, green magic doesn't work for her at all. She can't remember which herb is which, and she feels like a … [Read more...]
Pax, Journey Home
I haven't read Pax, but I picked up Pax, Journey Home from Kahaani Box. It's a lovely book, but I have a warning - don't read the blurb!I don't often read the blurb before I read a book, and so often when I do, I regret it! A huge chunk of what is mentioned in the blurb happens in the last twenty pages of the book, and I would have loved to discover it through the book rather than before I started reading!Pax, Journey Home is the story of a boy and a fox, both of whom have suffered immense losses. The boy Peter is determined never to love again, never to find family and never to get attached. The fox Pax, on the other hand, is quick to forgive and quick to make friends. As the story unfolds, we walk two parallel journeys of healing. Pax and Peter walk side by side, never meeting, but forever aware of each other. And in their own ways, they trust, love, and find home.I … [Read more...]
Gooney Bird Greene
Gooney Bird Greene was the second book I read from Kahaani Box, and it's a fun story by an author whose work I admire. Lois Lowry has written such a range of books! I've read Number the Stars (one of my favourite reads from 2020), The Giver and Gathering Blue that I remember, and I have no idea if I've read others!Even though I'm not a fan of precocious protagonists, I usually find something to admire about stories featuring them. In Gooney Bird Greene, I loved the wordplay. Gooney Bird insists that she tells only true stories, yet her stories feature magic carpets, a cat being consumed by a cow, and diamond earrings from the Prince!The joy of the book is in all her revelations. Clever wordplay makes for great storytelling, and Gooney Bird is a storyteller who holds her audience in the palm of her hand. A humorous read that keeps us longing for more stories, just like the … [Read more...]
Dear Sister
I've missed libraries so much ever since the British Library shut down!On a recent visit to Bangalore, I visited Kahaani Box, and I made a decision to join on the spur of the moment. There's nothing like receiving a parcel of books I'm very unlikely to have read otherwise!Neha from Kahaani Box recommended Dear Sister to me, so it was the first book I picked up. For one, I take librarian recommendations very seriously. For another, she and I both have a sister, and that was one of the reasons for the recommendation. And it was such a gorgeous read!The first thing to love about Dear Sister is the way it is designed. It looks like letters written by a child who is growing up! Some letters are in pencil; others are in pen. We can see sections that have been erased, but where the marks of earlier words remain. And of course, the pictures and doodles. As the writer of the … [Read more...]
The Best Idea of All
I'm always nervous about reading my books with my book club! I wonder if and when I'll get over that. We've read Dragonflies, Jigsaws and Seashells, The Prophecy of Rasphora, Dhara's Revolution and Flipped, and now, we'll read The Best Idea of All.A story about festivals and the climate crisis, The Best Idea of All explores how children can and do find ways to make a difference. As I discovered through the many author events I did with The Best Idea of All, there's so much I can do with the book! And especially as my book club runs online, we can bring in elements that would be rather difficult to do at an in-person session - like making natural colours. Book Discussion What is the climate crisis? And what can we do about it? The cover of The Best Idea of All reveals what festival the story is about - Holi. But in the middle of the worst … [Read more...]
Dungeon Tales II
We're going to reread Dungeon Tales II by Venita Coelho at my book club! And thanks to the Neev Literature Festival, I have an autographed copy!Short stories work well with my book clubs, especially as we read just excerpts in class. Both volumes of Dungeon Tales were wonderfully received by the children, so I'm excited to read three more stories from this volume! Roman Numerals I loved Roman numerals as a child, and I always waited for the chance to use them. Letters that are actually numbers? Fascinating!We'll look at numbers, why the introduction of zero was important, and see how difficult it is to add XCIV and VI, for instance, while 94 + 6 is as easy as it gets! Structure Stories within a story within a story - I love the idea! What unique structures have writers played with? Is it possible for us to write a story using chat … [Read more...]
The Talking T-Rex
We've read two books from the A to Z Mysteries by Ron Roy; we're all set to read another!Before picking up The Talking T-Rex, I wondered whether it would be a scary book--that's what the cover leads us to believe. But it's not! We know from the very beginning that the T-rex is a machine; in fact, we first see it before it is assembled. The mystery revolves around the T-rex, yes, but it's about who stole money from the T-rex's belly. It isn't about a T-rex going rogue! And the simplicity of the story makes it a perfect book club read. Inventions A talking t-rex is an exciting invention! If you could invent anything at all, what would you create and why? How would it work? Alliteration 'Alliteration' is a word that I introduce to my book club over and over again because it's such fun to play with! The Talking T-Rex. The Canary Caper. … [Read more...]
Just Harriet
Harriet isn't your typical protagonist. She lies, she's selfish, and she's often sulky and bad-tempered. Even as I read Just Harriet, I mulled over whether to introduce it to my book club. We've read and loved two books by Elana K. Arnold - A Boy Called Bat and Bat and the End of Everything - but this one's quite different. The protagonist is younger; she's just finished third grade. More, she behaves a lot younger; she's not the sophisticated child we often see around us. But doesn't that make her more real?The answer, to my mind, was yes. And that's why we're reading Just Harriet at my book club for ages nine at ten next month. Names Harriet is named after the protagonist of Harriet the Spy, but whenever grown-ups make the link, she's quick to say that she's "just Harriet". Names are important to all of us! What does your name mean? Who … [Read more...]
Spellbound
We're rereading Spellbound by Nalini Sorensen at my book club next month!There are some books that simply must be read at a book club. They're full of possibility, bursting with ideas and imagination. When author Nalini Sorensen visited my online creative writing programme a few months ago, Spellbound was hot off the press, and the reviews I read promised that it would be be one of those books, a delight to work with. And I wasn't wrong. It is everything I expected it to be - a book that wants to be read and discussed.In Nalini Sorensen's story, all poor Prince Freddy was doing was chasing a beautiful butterfly. That's it. It was sheer bad luck that he ran into the witch Weyona, who took great delight in turning him into a frog. Yes, that's a little bit of The Frog Prince right there; it is a fairytale remix after all. But what will saving Prince Freddy involve? Is he going to get a good … [Read more...]
Petu Pumpkin: Freedom Fighter
We need more books this length! Petu Pumpkin: Freedom Fighter is perfect for my book club for so many reasons! For one, it's a book about agency and creating change, while also being a humorous read featuring familiar characters. For another, since it's just about a hundred pages long, we have enough time to read as well as do activities based on the book. Interviews Petu Pumpkin and his friends gather quite a crowd as they protest outside their school gates. This is a good prompt for us to explore how interviews worked. What questions would we ask an interviewee? Just like when we read Sita's Chitwan, I look forward to interesting interviews of my book clubbers! Campaign What would you campaign for? What makes you angry, and what do you feel is unjust?With Petu Pumpkin, we'll look at a few elements of a campaign from discussing … [Read more...]