A Little History I started conducting reading and writing workshops for children in 2013 at the British Library, Pune. It was fun, and the library space was exciting. Both as standalone events and as part of the library’s larger Reading Challenges, it seemed to me that libraries were ideal for workshops of the kind I […]
Strangus Derangus
Strangus Derangus & Other Adventures of Little Shambu is another book that I enjoyed hot off the press. It’s a collection of short stories, perfect for my book club because we can read three full stories together in class, leaving the other three for the children to read on their own. Role Play There’s nothing like […]
By Royal Appointment
Although I did read several books by Jeffrey Archer when I was in college, I never grew to be a fan the way so many of my friends were. Yet, I thoroughly enjoyed By Royal Appointment–rendered even more delightful by Priya Kuriyan’s illustrations. By Royal Appointment There’s nothing like listening to the author read out a […]
Bat and the End of Everything
Exactly a year ago, I posted about A Boy Called Bat, which we read at the April 2023 edition of my book club. We loved the book, and the rest of the series has been on my mind ever since then. In April 2024, we’re finally going to read Bat and the End of Everything, the last […]
When Jiya Met Urmila
I read Shabnam Minwalla’s When Jiya Met Urmila at least two years ago. I can’t believe I didn’t review it on my blog! I think I was probably waiting to use it at my book club, which didn’t happen for several reasons. I think we’d read too many books by the same writer–Lucky Girl, The Shy Supergirl and Nimmi’s […]
My Year in Workshops: 2023
Writing sessions from the car. Book club sessions from a misal shop on the highway. Guest sessions in my dance class hall. 2023 was a year when I seemed to be juggling rather a lot, especially as my writing programmes were bursting at the seams, plus I started an in-person writers’ club at St. Mary’s […]
Gobi Goes Viral
Gobi Goes Viral by Vibha Batra is funny, heart-warming, and altogether believable. We’ve read and loved Kolam Kanna and Pinkoo Shergill at my book club, and I’m happy to introduce yet another book by the same writer to the children I meet. Here’s what we’ll do as we read this story! Talent Show How can we read […]
The Very Glum Life of Tootoolu Toop
We’ve read The Very Glum Life of Tootoolu Toop before and I can’t wait to read it again! I know it’s longer than the books I usually choose, plus every batch of children is different, with mixed reading levels. Once more, I find myself asking, will it be too ambitious to read it in three classes […]
The Canary Caper
It’s been 25 years since The Canary Caper was published, and it’s still such a joy to read! We read the first of the A to Z Mysteries, The Absent Author, in April 2021. When I met the some of the same children again in June, several of them were devouring the rest of the series. I’m now […]
An Alien in the Jam Factory
An Alien in the Jam Factory is such a fun read! A book that celebrates ideas is the best kind of book to read with children. The very first page is filled with doodles and ideas–like a jam slice, which is like a cheese slice that you can put straight into a sandwich. What else can […]
Trunk Call for Ajju
Even when I read and reviewed Trunk Call for Ajju in June 2023, I knew it would be one of my book club reads soon enough. A book about children and animals always holds a special place in my heart, and elephants are extra special. Here’s what we’ll do as we read the book. Money-Making Ideas […]
The Diary as Story
In just a few weeks, yet another writing programme will come to an end! Yesterday was the third and last guest session of the season–a creative writing workshop with children’s book author Sowmya Rajendran. I love it when guests reinforce something I’ve been talking about for a while. During yesterday’s session, it was ‘write what […]
Stories: Comic-Page Style
What a rewarding session we had with Nandita Basu! At workshops like this one, I think I learn as much as the young writers who sign up. Step by step, Nandita led us through the creation of one page of narrative that brings together text and illustration in the style of a graphic novel. We […]
Green Stuff and Nonsense
What a fun session we had on green writing with Bijal Vachharajani! In a single hour, we spoke of a million creatures from elephants to frogs, ferrets to spiders, lion-tailed macaques to slugs that aren’t slugs. Bijal’s workshop was a guest session at my writing programme. We’ve just reached the end of our poetry module, […]
Kittu’s Very Mad Day
I remember meeting Harshikaa Udasi, author of Kittu’s Terrible Horrible No Good Very Mad Day at a lit fest several years ago. I had read her book already, but unfortunately, I had a Kindle edition, so I couldn’t go up to her and get my copy signed. I told her that, and then, casually, a […]
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, […]
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 […]
Art Workshop with Kripa
Each time a new writing programme begins, I feel it whizzes by. Twelve weeks are nearly over, and here we are, after our last guest session of the programme, an art workshop with art educator and children’s illustrator, Kripa. It was such a treat! I’ve been looking at Kripa’s art for a while, and I […]
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 […]