In the beautiful coastal town of Manarola, there lived a peasant girl named Lisa. She lived by the sea in a hut with her mother, as her father had left them when she was little. She didn’t have toys like we do, but she loved playing on the beach with her friends and helping people around her. There was no proper school in her town but she did her best to learn what she could and developed wonderful life skills as she grew up.
Tag Archives: Indian Literature
Book Review – Mayil Will Not Be Quiet
Book Title – Mayil Will Not Be Quiet
Author – Niveditha Subramaniam and Sowmya Rajendran
Illustrator – Niveditha Subramaniam
Published By – Tulika Publishers
Recommended Age Group – 11+ years
About the Book
This is a fictional book about real-life challenges any middle school girl goes through. It’s an amazing book that will make you cry and laugh and teach you all the crucial things one needs to know while growing up.
Synopsis
Have you ever wondered why that weird, quiet man wears a saree you see on a train or a bus? Or why all the great Bollywood actors/actresses are fair and white-skinned? Well! This book is a must-read if you are as curious as Mayil! It talks about everything any girl wants answers to. It’s a beautiful book explaining transgender, skin color, sex, love, and much more. Family drama… school fights! Enjoy how Mayil beats the irksome Jyothi, rejoins forces with Ki, and calmly handles the ‘V.S. Situation’.
Book Review – As I Prepare For Landing
‘As I Prepare For Landing!’ is the debut book of Mrs. Gulnar Raheem Khan. It won the Best Debut award in the Fiction Book category held at the 4th ALS Lit Fest in the year 2022. It has been described as a ‘Basket of Stories’ and a ‘Casket of Poems’. I would, however, classify most of the prose in this book as personal experiences and anecdotes, since they do not follow the structure expected from a short story, like character arc, plot, conflict. They are simplistic in nature, with love and compassion being the common themes recurring throughout the book.
Depiction of friendship in children’s literature
Have you ever read a book and wished you were part of the chaotic friend group? Or sobbed your eyes out after they were reunited with a childhood best friend or when they sacrificed themselves for the other? Then this list is for you!
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Book Review – My Act Of Heart
Book Title – My Act Of Heart
Author – Various
Ideated & Curated By – Anjali G Sharma & Deepika Ahuja
Recommended Age – 7+ years
Ideated and Curated by Anjali G Sharma and Deepika Ahuja, My Act Of Heart is an anthology of stories written by children from around the globe which bring to fore the virtues of compassion and generosity towards everyone, irrespective of genders and races. The stories included in this book are heartwarming and at times quite funny as well! Majority of the plots in the book are of a child or a group of children (for the most part friends) who either go somewhere where they observe someone in need, or chance upon something or someone they can help. Whatever be the case, the children in question choose to act on the scenario and with the consent of their parents or grandparents, help those in need. Now, if every single story was about helping a human, we could get pretty bored reading the book after a point. But what makes this book interesting throughout are the varied acts of compassion which are each unique. The book manages to keep the reader engaged and wanting to know what is coming next.
Diversity and Representation in YA and Children’s Literature
We are a planet made up of a diverse group of people – and a diverse group of people imply a diverse set of problems. We are riddled with issues so eclectic in their nature, it’s almost impossible to find a uniform solution to all of them.
This is where I think literature comes into picture. We turn to books and poetry when we are most helpless. In times of adversity, we seek refuge in art – which is why it is so important to have proper and equal representation in all of art’s branches.
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Book Review – Kings, Saviours & Scoundrels
Book Title – Kings, Saviours & Scoundrels: Timeless Tales from Katha Sarita Sagara
Author – Anupama Jain
Genre – Folktales/Legends
Publisher – Readomania
Recommended Age – 7+ years
Timeless Tales from Katha Sarita Sagara by Anupama Jain is a retelling of tales from the Kathā-saritsāgara – one of India’s oldest classics. It is a well-known collection of stories from the 11th century. It was also told in Sanskrit by Somadeva who was a Brahmin Sanskrit scholar from Kashmir. The stories are very old, but the morals conveyed by them are still relevant and understandable to kids as well.
Book Review – Why is my hair curly?
Book Title – Why is my hair curly?
Author – Lakshmi Iyer
Genre – Realistic Fiction
Publisher – Red Panda
Recommended Age – 7+ years
Book Review – Woof!: Adventures by the Sea
Book Title – Woof!: Adventures by the Sea
Author – Aparna Karthikeyan
Illustrator – Sagar Kolwankar
Genre – Fiction (Pets & Animals)
Publisher – Red Panda
Recommended Age – 8+ years
Book Review – Pinkoo Shergill Pastry Chef
Book Title – Pinkoo Shergill Pastry Chef
Author – Vibha Batra
Illustrator – Shamika Chaves
Genre – Realistic Fiction
Publisher – Scholastic
Recommended Age – 7+ years