I read Unfair quite some time ago, and what I loved most about it is how pacy it is. One chapter just rolls into the next, making it the perfect read for my book club. From discussing themes to exploring narrative voices and structure, there’s so much I can do with a book like Unfair! Discrimination What does […]
Earwig and the Witch
When I learned that Earwig and the Witch is a movie too, I debated a long time over whether to read it with my book club or not. Finally, I decided that whether the children I meet have watched the movie or not, we can read and enjoy the book together. In fact, those who’ve watched the […]
Kolam Kanna
October 2023 sees us reading another brand-new book, hot off the press! I read Kolam Kanna just about a month ago, and I loved it. What’s not to love about a kolam-drawing child with friends who stand up for him? Here’s what we’ll do as we read this book. Kolam Have you read Susheela’s Kolams? If we can, […]
Kolam Kanna
I’ve read two books by Vibha Batra in less than a month, and I’ve loved them both! So many things about Kolam Kanna were utterly delightful that this review deserves to be in bullet points, highlighting everything I loved about it. The name Bharathi! The moment I learned that Bharathi is a boy’s name in […]
Gobi Goes Viral
Gopi compares everybody around him to a vegetable. His world comprises a capsicum, a carrot, a tomato, a sweet potato … The problem, of course, is that the moment he talks about it, he becomes Gobi, or worse, Fool Gobi. Trying to tell the bullies in class that it isn’t Fool, but Phool doesn’t help. […]
Moin and the Monster
I’m rereading Moin and the Monster with my book club! I read it in June 2021, and all those who read it with me are now too old to be part of Read, Write, Explore, so it’s time to introduce it to a fresh batch of children. At my last creative writing programme, one of the […]
Because of Winn-Dixie
Kate DiCamillo’s Because of Winn-Dixie has been on my list of books to read for a l-o-n-g time. Yet, I didn’t get around to reading it until I thought of introducing it to my book club. And I’m so glad I did! It’s a gorgeous book. It’s the kind of book that makes your heart ache and […]
A Flamingo in My Garden
We’ve read Talon the Falcon, The Golden Eagle and The Paradise Flycatcher. How can we not read A Flamingo in My Garden? The entire Feather Tales series is stunningly illustrated in full colour, and that is most certainly part of the charm. Like The Golden Eagle, A Flamingo in My Garden is a story within a story. Mitalee is delighted to […]
The Prophecy of Rasphora
It is always a little daunting to introduce a book of my own to my book club. But I’ve done so many events based on The Prophecy of Rasphora, and so many of them have gone so well, that I feel (hope) this will be fun too! Tara, Afreen and Vandana discover a land behind a […]
Journey to Jo’burg
I picked up my copy of Journey to Jo’burg when I visited The Dogears Bookshop a couple of months ago. As I read it, I wondered whether I could introduce it to my book club. It is simply and beautifully written, but it touches upon difficult themes that I don’t know a lot about. I remember reading When […]
Munni Monster
I read Munni Monster a few months ago and loved it. It’s a beautiful book, written with empathy and ending with hope. I knew I had to introduce it to my book club, and I can’t wait to do so. Munni Monster is a book about a difficult subject, but for me, dwelling on only the subject […]
Dungeon Tales
We read Dungeon Tales II in September last year and loved it. In fact, it was everyone’s favourite read from the August-September selection, even though it competed with Paati Vs UNCLE and Frindle. So how can we not read Dungeon Tales, or, as the children at my book club call it, ungeon ales? A brilliantly crafted collection of stories, this book takes us […]
Pinkoo Shergill: Pastry Chef
When the publishers sent me a review copy of Pinkoo Shergill: Pastry Chef, I devoured it. Even as I read it, I knew I wanted to introduce it to my book club soon. The only question I had was as to whether to introduce it to ages seven and eight, or nine and ten. Ultimately, I […]
Munni Monster
Mishti’s life is good. She has a best friend (never mind if said best friend is a little annoying), parents who love her, and a grandmother whom she adores. Everything’s perfect–until Munni, her grandmother’s cousin, comes to stay–no, live–with them. And suddenly, things are not idyllic anymore. Munni is a weirdo. She is old, but […]
Tara and the Friendship Theorem
Maths and Logic are fascinating. I remember when I studied Descartes, who tried to prove the existence of God using pure logic. I understand the drive to do that – just like I understand Tara’s need to use a theorem to find friends. Can a foolproof Friendship Theorem exist? Can we actually use a Venn […]
The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips
I read The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips several years ago. And like most of Michael Morpurgo’s books, it’s a classic. In the cruellest, most inhuman of times, we find stories of courage and love – Morpurgo never fails to remind us of that. Through a series of diary entries, we learn about 11-year-old Lily, who lives […]
Talon the Falcon
We love the Feather Tales series at my book club! I didn’t choose to read Talon the Falcon earlier because it is much shorter than The Golden Eagle and The Paradise Flycatcher, but when children fall in love with a series, how can we not read the whole lot together? Set in the familiar Rose Garden, Talon the Falcon opens […]
Flipped – Mystery Stories and Sci-Fi Stories
With Flipped – Mystery Stories and Sci-Fi Stories, we have another first at my book club – an anthology! Full disclosure – I have a story in Flipped too, but we won’t be reading that one. I love the idea of the Flipped books. You read a few stories, then decide you want another kind of story, […]
Crenshaw
I read Crenshaw over two years ago. In fact, it was one of my top reads of 2020, and it’s a story that has stayed with me since then, a story I think about often because of its portrayal of friendship, loneliness and vulnerability. Crenshaw is the story of a boy, Jackson, and a giant cat. What […]
Secret Friends
I love Elizabeth Laird. And Secret Friends was another beautiful read, a heartbreaking story about wanting to fit in, but never quite managing it. Lucy is the first to tease Rafaella, and this is something she regrets right through her life. Rafaella has enormous ears, and Lucy, unthinkingly, coins the name ‘Earwig’, a name that […]