Asha Nehemiah's Trouble with Magic was the very first book we read at my very first reading programme. And I loved it. So, when I learned that after all these years, there was a sequel ...Writing a sequel to a lovely book is challenging, even more challenging than writing a new book--because there are expectations. But A Pinch of Magic lives up to them.Let's begin with the blurb. It made me frown. How was it possible to write a whole book about a spoon? And then, as I read the book, I smiled and chuckled. Because yes, that's what A Pinch of Magic is about. Aunt Malu's special pinching spoon is broken, and she needs another. The premise is just that simple. And in Asha Nehemiah's grand, humorous style, we dive into a story about a spoon.There's so much I love about the story! I love how similar the first line of A Pinch of Magic is to the first line of Trouble with Magic. We … [Read more...]
Nida Finds a Way
I stare at my laptop screen, wondering how to write about Nida Finds a Way. It's such an important book. A book that makes me oh-so-curious about how a child would respond. What would children say that this story is about? Would they giggle and keep reading on and on to see how Nida balances her love for her anxious father and her need to climb trees, ride cycles and live?Children read what they want to read in stories, and I am always amazed by that. So, would children read Nida Finds a Way as a story about Shaheen Bagh? I somehow doubt it, and that's the reason why I think the book is so precious. As a child, I would have laughed at over-protective Abba, his NONONO, YESYESYES and his twitching beard. I would have been bothered to distraction about the illustration on page 24 where Abba's left arm is injured instead of his right. And I would have loved how Nida manages to sneak out … [Read more...]
On Reading a Series, Reading Snobbery and Binge Reading
I often come across parents who complain that their children read only Geronimo Stilton, or only Wimpy Kid. Or only Dork Diaries, or ... what else? If social media had existed when I was a child, parents would probably have been fretting about children reading only Enid Blyton--except for the fact that snobbery around the act of reading is a real thing. It is considered far more acceptable to read Enid Blyton (never mind the gender stereotypes and racism--we turned out okay, right?) than to read Geronimo Stilton. Here's why I think that's so.Enid Blyton was British. On the whole, there was (is?) derision of everything but the Queen's English. Only proper English, thank you very much, no Americanisms, and definitely no slang.Morals. Yes, parents are obsessed with reading being educational. (I know, not all parents. I know. My parents, for instance, weren't.) Good girls and boys do … [Read more...]
Maya Saves the Day
Earlier this month, we read Maya in a Mess at my reading programme, and one child volunteered, "I've read the book that comes before Maya in a Mess.""Did you like it?" I asked.She nodded. "I read it four times."Now, if that isn't endorsement, I don't know what is!I enjoyed Maya Saves the Day thoroughly too! What I loved most about it is that it is told entirely from the point of view of a child who is a bundle of contradictions. On the one hand, she has all kinds of fears. She's scared of crows, whooshing mango trees and dark places. On the other hand, she's completely secure - when she's separated from her parents at a mall, she does not become afraid. Instead, she's angry with her parents for being so careless as to get lost.Maya is a very special combination of humour, solemnity and madness. In the same way as she cries MAYDAY! in Maya in a Mess, we find a confident girl here … [Read more...]
The Clockwala’s Clues – The Story Behind the Story
When I wrote of how Sisters at New Dawn and Dragonflies, Jigsaws and Seashells came into being, I had every intention of documenting the journey of each published book.So much for that.It's been three months since The Clockwala's Clues was published, and I kept postponing writing the story behind the story. Yesterday, however, I visited Kolsa Gully, which inspired my Tipu Gully, so I decided to take a few pictures and finally write Clockwala Uncle's story.Unlike my other books, The Clockwala's Clues is heavily inspired by Pune, the city in which I grew up. In particular, it's based loosely on what is popularly called the Camp area, with its bakeries, old shops and diverse population.Here's an excerpt from the book:And here's a picture of Kolsa Gully: No, the key shop is not the first shop in the street, and no, it is not … [Read more...]
Maya in a Mess
It seems to have become something of a tradition to begin each batch of my online reading programme with a hOle book. For the third edition of my programme, it's going to be Maya in a Mess, a delightful book that made me chuckle. Peopled with sparkling characters, this book is ideal for ages seven and eight, so how could I not include it in my programme?Maya is the cupboard monitor. The proudest moment of her life is when she is entrusted with the key to the class cupboard. The pride! The honour! The triumph!I remember the moment oh-so-clearly, and how could I not feel what Maya feels?Now, you can imagine what the mess is, can't you?Discussion Responsibility is serious business! What was the greatest thing you were entrusted with? What do you do when you make a mistake? How do you think people would react if you lost something precious? Activity What makes a reading programme … [Read more...]
Happy Book News
On Saturday afternoon, the doorbell rang. It was a courier. For me. From Penguin Random House.When you receive an unexpected package, do you try to guess what it could be? I do. It was a slim package, so the easiest guess would be that it contained one book.But why would Penguin send me one book? Could it be a calendar? On the 6th of February? Or a review copy? But surely someone would have written to me saying they wanted a review!I opened it to find one copy of The Clockwala's Clues. There was no letter, nothing. I had no idea why my publisher would send me a copy of my book.So I wrote to my editor.Why did I receive another copy of The Clockwala's Clues?Probably a reprint! came the reply.Already? The book is less than two months old! But I was excited, so I opened the plastic wrap and looked to see if it said anywhere that it was a reprint. No. Nothing. Oh, well.My … [Read more...]
Lucky Girl
Lucky Girl is a hilarious book. It's imaginative, wacky and full of surprises. Sumi is a lucky girl. With her pink bed, a window that overlooks the sea, soft toys and a chef for a mother, she must be a lucky girl, right?Wrong.As I chuckled my way through this hOle book written by Shabnam Minwalla and illustrated by Tanvi Bhat, I knew I had to work with it at my reading programme! Here are a few things I plan to do with the book.Funny recipesPammi Gupta makes pumpkin peel muffins and furry leaf parathas for Sumi. Yuck! What kinds of things would you put together to make an imaginative meal? Would you eat the things you can see on the cover of the book? Once you know what the ingredients are, would you still eat them?PoetrySumi takes part in a poetry writing competition organised by Fab Foods. Her friend Priya wants to write one kind of poem while she wants to … [Read more...]
Three hOle Books
Who doesn't love a hole in a book? I love the idea of the hole, and I do wish it were possible to make the holes part of every illustration! I'm sure the illustrator would probably find that rather restrictive, but even so, I delighted in each picture that used the hole in some way.Petu Pumpkin: Tooth TroublesWhat if you really need a football and the only person who can get you one is the tooth fairy? And then, what if the tooth fairy bargains with you and says that a football is worth at least two teeth and not just one?I chuckled as I read Petu Pumpkin: Tooth Troubles and could picture so much of it as the kind of cartoon I would have watched as a child! The very correct, very polite letters to the tooth fairy; the joy of a fallen tooth; the conviction that a tooth deserves some sort of payment ... What fun the book was!TitlePetu Pumpkin: Tooth … [Read more...]