That’s what Prince Veera discovers when he and his best friend, Suku, are given the opportunity to preside over the court of his father, King Bheema. Themes: Folktales, India, Cultural traditions, Humor, Friendship, Multiculturalīeing a wise and just ruler is no easy task. Mangoes, Mischief, and Tales of Friendship: Stories from India Bring back the joy of being a child, share the joy with another child because we owe it to them to be hopeful and set examples to be aspirational for the future.Īnd here is a poem to read and perhaps know by heart.Multicultural Children’s Book Day, Jan. So if you’re feeling a bit down or you’re cynical about the situation that is unfolding in our real worlds, go read a book, share a joke, write a poem and watch a funny cartoon. I’m that ladybird that travels the world from garden to balcony and back again. I’m that butterfly who knows to live in the today and visit as many flowers as it can. I’m that worm who crosses the road hopeful about the journey and of reaching the destination. Then I’ll spot a ladybird on the balcony, or a butterfly on a flower or a worm hoping to cross the road without a calamity and I’m eager to get back to the desk to make up a story. And often I might decide to throw in the towel and say I’ll never write another story.īut that thought stays in my mind for less than a day. Sometimes things happen in the world or in the industry that will make me despair.

The very act of writing a story is hopeful that it will find its readers, in the future. I’m hopeful for the book to be liked by my peers and then by my agent and then by a publisher and ultimately by the young reader. We can create the worlds we imagine, we can be the person we aspire to be and all of that is built on the hope for the future.Įvery time I begin a story, I’m hopeful of the words that will tumble out of my pen. The job of those who write fiction for young people is to imagine a better world for all of us. Because hope is the lightest of things that lifts us up.Īs a writer for young people, and a 7-year old at heart, I’m always hopeful about every new day. Despite the chaotic events across the world, and the pandemic not showing signs of slowing down, I’m feeling hopeful. Posted in Reading Let’s hope for a safer tomorrow! And if you enjoy the story I tell or the workshop I create, do support authors and illustrators like me, by buying our books next time you’re in the mood to read a new book. Please do use them for free and share them with friends and family. Keeping that in mind, here is a collection of resources that parents, teachers and care-givers can use from my bookshelf to yours. While I wouldn’t be able to offer everything for free, there are resources I’ve created that can be reused many more times. We’ve all gotten used to making videos, doing school visits online and running workshops to a screen that broadcasts than to eager young people who raise their hands and shout out their ideas.Īs an author, I’d like to keep writing these stories and creating more opportunities to share stories, ideas and inspiration to imagine to all children who need it. While it’s impossible to do free video visits to schools or offer all the stories we write for free to the entire world, authors and illustrators around the world have offered their time, energy and their intellectual property to children and their families to enjoy. Art by Jen Kahtun for Sona Sharma – Very Best Big SisterĬhildren too can find the glimmer of joy amidst the practical rubbles of everyday lockdown life – the story that makes them smile, the book that makes them think, a joke or a song that they can repeat and a drawing that inspires them to draw.Īs an author of children’s books, as a storyteller and as a writer who visits schools talking to children often, I understand the struggles of teachers and parents and the hard work put in by librarians to find ways of placing the books in children’s hands. We see joy in unexpected snow, a bird flying past our windows and discovering a long-lost piece of chocolate behind the spice jars. Regardless of the medium, stories keep our hopes soaring high despite the fierce winds and darkening skies. While we are familiar with terms like lockdown, zoom and quarantine, and our children are adapting to this new world, we are also fatigued by staying in, being alert all the time and sneezing into our elbows.ĭuring these times, stories keep us rooted to our past, our dreams and our imaginations. As we enter into 2021, everything’s a bit up in the air.

Soundar krishnaswamy