shyamala's world

Published by Mango Books, The Strange Case of Nayantara is a middle-grade book that deals with the importance of consent. This book has been written by Vaishali Shroff, author of picture books - Ari and Raindrops . The Strange Case of Nayantara is Vaishali's first middle-grade book which can be used to deal with the importance of consent, a tricky issue to discuss with kids.                                     Why did you choose to set the story in a village instead of a city? Do you think Nayantara’s parents would have dealt with the issue differently if they were based in the city? Absolutely no! What happened to Nayantara could happen to any child, girl or boy, in any part of this world. This story just happens to be set in a small town/village in Gujarat. 2.     How did you think of creating Silly Baba? It is through his interventi...

Shrilok Homeless is back with a new set of mysteries. Created by Pika Nani aka Deepika Murthy, the Mumbai chaiwallah  leaves for London to solve a new challenge in Shrilok Homeless The Ultimate Adventures( Penguin Random House India).  Ten short stories keep you glued  this weekend. Pika Nani shares a slice of her writing life here.  1. How much of your life have  you spent in Mumbai? You have covered  so many parts of Mumbai in your book. I grew up in Mumbai and have spent the first 25 years of my life there. I have tried to bring in my experiences and observations of the city and its people and culture. The plan was to have cases across the length and breadth of Mumbai in the first book, and then in the second book, to extend to other parts of India and even abroad. 2. What has contributed to Shrilok's cool demeanour inspite of his homelessness? Shrilok may be an orphan and a chaiwala, but he has a rare gift of observation and de...

Nandini Nayar is India's leading writers for children. She is one of the few authors who has successfully written fiction and nonfiction for children of all ages.  Her wide range of writing has made her a respected name in the world of Indian literature. Kahani Takbak quizzed her about books, writing and life. How did you become a writer? I became a writer when I stopped simply dreaming about being a writer and did something. I wrote a story which was published in the children’s pages of Deccan Herald. At that time I was teaching in a school and a student came up to tell me he had read my story and enjoyed it. This was a very positive and effective encouragement and it inspired me to continue writing. Oh, and getting paid for my story was hugely motivating too. I wrote several more stories that were published in the same newspaper. My first picture book happened when I began telling my son stories and sent two of these to Tulika. Tulika accepted both the stories. I ...

  Michael C. Baumann's Venom Wars of the Desert Realm is a book for 8-12 year old children. Set in the deserts of Arizona, the book has an unusual story line and   characters.  Michael shares more information about his first book. 1.        Hares and owls are common in picture books.   What made you choose them as protagonists for a middle grade novel? 2.        Spiders, lizards, snakes, yellow jackets and wasps are a unique set of supporting set of characters too. 1&2.  The animals of the Sonoran Desert (in Southern Arizona)  were the inspiration for all of the characters in my story.   There is such diverse life here, and is such a tough environment, it’s admirable.   As for the bad guys, there are so many poisonous critters, they all seemed like natural bad guys.  Besides creating a fun action story, I wanted to pay tribute to the beautiful world a...