Leela Gour Broome's Earthquake Boy: A story of hope, love and happiness!

Guest Blog -Leela Gour Broome

Published by Talking Cub, an imprint of  Speaking Tiger, Earthquake Boy is author Leela Gour Broome's fourth book for young adults. Here's a guest blog written by the Pune based author.

I have often been asked by readers why and what made me write EARTHQUAKE BOY.

         

Here’s my take:

When I read about the massive Bhuj earthquake in January, 2001, I found that many children had been buried alive never to be seen by their families again. It broke my heart. How awful for their parents, their child lost forever. Similarly there were children who’d lost their parents. I read about many orphans and knew I had the main ingredients for a great story. 

Why not write a tale about a teenager rescued from under a building, injured and unconscious, rushed to hospital in Ahmedabad for surgery and nursing care? Why not add that he had amnesia-the loss of memory?  With no knowledge of his own background, family, or his past, Binna-my teenage hero could begin a long hunt for his own family, if there were any still alive. 

                    

In the process of his hunt, I could add some of the other ingredients in which I have a long and abiding interest. Here are some of them: 

1.Travel: Especially as it means the sometimes unexpected discovery of silent, tucked-away and hidden places in our old Indian cities!

2.History: The history I read as a teen was completely irrelevant to our Indian tales of war, courage, the reigns of Kings, the entry of marauding hordes from the North or the West; they focused mainly on pre-and post Independence. How much history I’d missed learning about! 

3.Mystery and Suspense: Don’t you love these two elements in a story? My readers can peer into Binna’s mind and discover much of the excitement through his eyes, for what he sees he tells you through the story.

4.The Homeless children of India: We hardly know anything about the secret lives of children who on so many road corners, huddled for warmth under bridges and pavements, living in abandoned concrete pipes, living off other people’s left-over foods, singing for their suppers on many of our trains. They have secret lives that few of us know about.

5.Archeology:We have such fabulous buildings in India, each of them with a story to tell!

Using all these ‘ingredients’, I now had huge possibilities: I could make my hero travel, meet all sorts of people, some good, some bad , make friends with homeless kids, discover some history (through ancient buildings and history of past owners) and much more.

I live on a farm in the suburbs of Pune.  Sitting at my desk in 2006 and onwards through the years, as I looked through my picture windows, the story began to unfold in my mind, and within a while Binna, my earthquake boy began to come to life. It wasn’t too long before the story was done.  

And just as I was moved in Jan 2001, I’m sure you, my readers, will be shaken up-think earthquake-by this story too. Enjoy Binna’s story!

To buy a copy of Earthquake Boy, click here.