I’m an Indian tourist. Monkeys aren’t new to me. We see them along railway lines, on walls, trying to get into houses … I’ve written about Matheran too, where a monkey came into the room, picked up a packet of milk powder, and then calmly looked around, trying to figure out what else to take. […]
Young Writers’ Club – Mystery Stories
A priceless necklace has been stolen from a museum and you are one of the suspects. How can you convince the jury that you’re innocent? “I was on a plane to Kashmir,” said one girl. “I can show you the ticket!” A little later, she added, “And I even have a photo that the air […]
The Lit Bug Fest 2018
The Lit Bug Fest, Pune’s own literary fest for children, was held yesterday, and I’m sure everyone who was there is still on a high. For me, just like last year, it was a delightful experience interacting with readers, talking about my books, sharing ideas, and even being interviewed by two child-journalists! The energy of […]
Taxis in Bali
When you read about the public transport system in Bali, you learn about bemos that are too crowded to use and Bluebird taxis that are reliable and reputable. I still don’t know what a bemo is. We saw bus stops that seemed impossibly high, and I never saw a bus stopping at any of them. […]
Back from Bali
Today, I finally finished writing my travelogue, which is over 50 pages long. I needed to get that done quickly before I forgot all the details! And now, I can leisurely write my blog, bit by bit, with one exciting detail after another. We were a group of ten dancers, and we were put up […]
What is travel without adventure?
Would we travel at all if there were no stories to tell? The things that go wrong make stories – and things that almost go wrong make the best stories of all. A train journey to Varanasi did not promise to be exciting. First, our train was from Mumbai at an unearthly hour. The journey […]
Performing in Varanasi
The last time I visited Varanasi, I was nearly run down by a charging bull. Not surprisingly, when the planning began for a dance trip to Varanasi, I was not overly excited. Varanasi, for me, was a place where religion was elaborately performed, as if every day was a festival. I was also utterly put […]
My Name’s not Friday
My Name’s Not Friday. I love the title. My name is not Friday. It says so much to me. In the afterword, Jon Walter talks about markers in the book like the embargo on cotton, which happened in the first year of the American Civil War. Yet, he warns the reader that if you try too […]
Workshop for Women’s Day
Yes, I was a bit sceptical about doing a workshop for children to mark International Women’s Day. What would I do? How much would I say? How would I even begin to talk about the inequality we see around us every day without even noticing it? Talking about equal pay means nothing to these children. […]
Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World
The British Library is organising several women’s day related events this weekend, and thanks to that, I came across a gem: Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World. Featuring Jane Austen, Gertrude Ederle, Coco Chanel, Frida Kahlo, Marie Curie, Mary Anning, Mary Seacole, Amelia Earhart, Agent Fifi, Sacagawa, Emmeline Pankhurst, Rosa Parks and Anne Frank, Fantastically […]
Writers’ Club – Another Year Ends
The Writers’ Club at St. Mary’s School has been running for three years now! The third year ended on a high, with children (and me on the inside) running, shouting and celebrating. All through the year, we played games around writing, kept inspiring one another, wrote and rewrote – and this was the result. In […]
Unbroken
I would be lying if I said that I read award-winning books objectively. Sometimes, my reading is tinged by, Oh, it won this award; I’m sure it’ll be great! And sometimes, by Okay, let me read this book and see what’s so great about is. Especially when I approach a book with the latter, I find myself overly […]
Charmed Life
I remember reading something by Diana Wynne-Jones a few years ago and not particularly enjoying it. I can’t even remember which book it was. I don’t know what made me pick up Charmed Life, but I’m so glad I did! Not only did I find a wonderful book, but I also found a list of books […]
The Wolf Wilder
The Girl Savage. Rooftoppers. And now, The Wolf Wilder. How can one person write three such wonderful, and wonderfully different books? I started reading The Wolf Wilder with unfairly high expectations. For one, I’ve read and loved Katherine Rundell’s other books. For another, the cover of The Wolf Wilder has a quote from Philip Pullman saying it is a triumph. What […]
Planetarium and Science Park, Bengaluru
Every year since I was born, I’ve visited Bangalore, or Bengaluru, if you prefer. Yet, I’ve barely done any touristy things there. Last year, I went to Cubbon Park, which was lovely. That opened my eyes to everything else I could do in the city! So, this year, we went beyond Corner House and all […]
Perijee and Me
Caitlin is sure her disguise will work. She will escape from the camp that is supposed to keep her safe from the monster that is taking over the world. She will save her friend. Caitlin dons a chef hat, and even writes ‘chef’ on it. If that’s not convincing, what is? Unfortunately, she looks like […]
Sophie Someone
When I started reading Sophie Someone, I simply could not figure it out. I was also a little put off by the idea that the whole story was told from the point of view of a pigeon. I have no love for pigeons. But then, something made me frown and say, ‘Let’s give this another shot.’ […]
So Many Books, So Little Time!
I’ve been reading so many lovely books that I think it’s finally time to write about them. When I am on a train with co-passengers I don’t want to talk to (which is 99.999% of the time), I end up reading almost throughout the journey. And when it’s a 20-hour journey … Aubrey and the […]
Reading Challenge Workshops at MIT Gurukul
Six workshops with six different batches. Six hours of workshopping, one session after another. And it was so much fun! MIT Gurukul is using a mixed bunch of reading challenge books this year. Some children are reading Space Hop, some Creepy House, and some The Big Friendly Read. So, beginning with Grade V, I decided […]
The Joys of Conducting Workshops
There are so many things I love about conducting workshops! I just finished a five-day creative writing workshop at Baner, and it was, as always, good fun. We began with limericks, which are always exciting. Sometimes, they’re funny; sometimes, just fun. Here are a few the children came up with during the session. Day two […]