shyamala's world

  Archaeologist Devika Cariapa is out with a new picture book for children- Uncle Nehru, Please Send An Elephant . Beautifully illustrated by Satwik Gade, this book has been published by Tulika Books. Devika shares more details about  her new book which has loads of elephantine details. How long have you been excavating information for this story?   The book has an interesting origin. Although I typically write longer, non-fiction books for children, I had always wanted to write a picture book. Quite soon after I shared this dream of mine with the editors at Tulika, they happened to see a story about Nehru’s ‘elephant diplomacy’ in a leading newsmagazine. They felt that there was an idea there that would make the basis of a wonderful story for children. They asked me if I would write it. Of course, I said yes right away! The process of research took a few months, since the topic is quite specific and limited in scope. Why did you feel this story needed to be share...

  Hope Stories for a Healthy mind is a collection of three stories aimed at building emotionally healthy children. Author Pragati Jalan Sureka has been working in the field of mental health for over fifteen years. Here are a few questions she answered .about coping with mental health challenges faced by the children in her stories,                         1. As a psychologist, how often do you come across kids like Shoma, Kabir and Ryan who face challenges because of OCD, depression and divorce in and around them? Very often. Poor performance in school is an alarming trend and more often than not, there is some issue at home that has caused it. 2. In all three stories, the parent/parents are patient with their kids. In actual life, how supportive are parents? Unfortunately, parents are not very supportive. They want the best for their children, and yet they have very little time to listen to children. This book aims...