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Reading Day

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Helen O' Grady's Navi Mumbai chapter invited me to be part of its Reading Day celebrations in honour of Dr Kalam's birthday. What a crazy day I had with enthusiastic children from St. Mary's School, Koparkhairane, and Gold Crest High, Vashi! The children were full of questions. One commented, "Most authors now don't really write; they type. Why do we call them writers? We should call them typers." Children asked me where my inspiration came from; they asked me what I enjoyed reading and what my journey towards publication was like. They asked how many times my work had been rejected, and did not quite believe me when I told them I had lost count. I read out three different stories from The Story-Catcher to three different groups. Each session was rewarding. It was a wonderful day; here's to many more! … [Read more...]

The Dragon Whisperer

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Last week, I conducted a workshop at the British Library on inculcating the habit of reading in children. There were principals and representatives from several schools in and around Pune, and many asked me where they could find book reviews. I realised I haven't written about books for a while, so for the next few days, that's what I'm going to be writing about! I loved this one! When characters in books become friends you care about, you know that the book you are reading is exceptional. Riding dragons comes naturally to Quenelda. She does not like fussy court life, where ladies are concerned with nothing more than petticoats, dresses and attractiveness. Yet, aged eleven, she finds herself frightened and isolated by her choices. All she wants to do is fly in the Open Sky. How difficult is it for the world to accept that? Title The Dragon Whisperer (The … [Read more...]

Reading Challenge Workshop at Mumbai

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Twelve hours of travel-time, and a three-hour workshop. I can't promise to do it again, yet it was fun! The British Council, Mumbai, has rolled out the reading challenge programme in several schools in Mumbai. I conducted three workshops at Universal High, Dahisar, and had a lovely time. We worked with Sophie's Snail by Dick King-Smith, a story I love. Classes one and two read the story with me, and enjoyed it as much as I did! We couldn't get over the size of the snail. The whole class chorused with me, "It's bright yellow and just the size of Sophie's middle fingernail!" With the older children, we did "The Porcupine" by Roald Dahl, "The Adventures of Isabel" by Ogden Nash, "The Quarrel" by Maxine Kumin, "A Pizza the Size of the Sun" by Jack Prelutsky and "Jimmy Goes to the City" by Arthur Read. The children learned about rhyme and meter, and then played with all the poetry we … [Read more...]

The Story-Catcher – A Review by a 9-year-old

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I've been waiting for something momentous before writing my blog - what could be more momentous than a review of The Story-Catcher by a nine-year-old? Arushi Upadhyaya had to design a book-jacket for a school competition. The entry she submitted is with the school, but she sent me the rough plan she made. At the back, she informs me, she put in the ISBN details and the name of the publisher. On the side, she wrote the name of the author. Within the book jacket, she wrote a synopsis of The Story-Catcher. And guess what? She won the first prize! She has also sent a review of The Story-Catcher to ParentEdge Magazine for a book review contest - I hope she wins! I will put up her review as soon as the ParentEdge results are announced. Meanwhile, here are the book cover and the synopsis. … [Read more...]

Books for Rainy Days

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It's been a while since I wrote, mainly because I've been reading. Here's a look at some of what I've read recently. As a child, I enjoyed reading and collecting the entire Animal Ark series. As I grew older, I learned that Lucy Daniels, the author of the series, did not exist. Just like Carolyn Keene and Franklin W. Dixon. While I never enjoyed Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys, I loved Animal Ark. I loved the names of the books - Owl in the Office, Hamster in a Hamper, Roo on a Rock ... I wanted to have them all. I imagine the Silver Dolphins series somewhat like that. The stories, in themselves, may not be memorable, but Stolen Treasures is a sweet story that build loyalty in young readers for the series as a whole. Children are always animal-lovers. Some are more vicarious in this love than others, but most enjoy books that … [Read more...]

What Went By

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It's taken me a while to write about the last month. How full of emotions it has been! We performed in Kalakshetra for Pushpa Teacher and Jaya Teacher, my teacher's teachers. We peaked and fell, rising and falling with a tide of emotions. We felt we underperformed, and then we were overwhelmed by everyone's responses. The teachers praised the performance; nothing else is important. My heart is brimming with joy and gratitude. In Bangalore, I did a two-day reading workshop. I wrote about day one here on the blog, but kept postponing it, even though I've been waiting to talk about how wonderful it was to conduct a workshop there. Atta Galatta is a delightful place, with the perfect ambience for a reading workshop. What warmed my heart is that the store ordered ten copies of The Story-Catcher, some of which were bought by the children after the session. (If you're in Bangalore and … [Read more...]

Empty Quarter (Girl on the Run Book 2)

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I sat at Coimbatore train station, book in hand. "What happened?" asked my sister, looking at my face. I grinned. "I'm inside this book." I added, quickly, "Will you keep a lookout for the train? I may not notice when it pulls in." That's how Empty Quarter was. As with Cat's Cradle, I jumped straight into the series without reading the first book. It was simply wonderful. What impressed me most of all is how rounded each character is. Christopher Lock is the perfect combination of grandfather and career-obsessed, calculating official. I love Darcie Lock, her stupidities and her beauty. Empty Quarter is the perfect combination of humour, anticipation and excitement. Reading it, I realised how effortlessly the story moves from up to down to up to down, pulling the reader through all the twists and turns in the plot. The confused mixture of child and adult in … [Read more...]

Reading Workshop at Atta Galatta, Bengaluru

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I'm conducting a two-day reading workshop at Bengaluru! Highlights: >Read aloud >Act out a story >Develop a love for reading >Imagine and create >Play a vocabulary game >Learn about book-publishing >Understand what copyright is Age-group: 8-12 years Dates: 4th and 5th July, 2015 Time: 11 am to 1 pm Total duration: 4 hours Fee: Rs 500 per child Venue: Atta Galatta Phone: 080-4160 0677 Contact Varsha at 09890798756 seshanvarsha@gmail.com … [Read more...]