Living Your Truth: Takeaways from ‘The Best At It’
For an adolescent, finding a niche for oneself may feel like a never-ending worry, constantly looming over one’s head. Most of us have tried hard to fit in and create an impression of a lifetime. Maulik Pancholy penned down similar struggles of his own in his book, The Best At It, a semi-autobiographical take on […]
5 Reasons Why Your Little One Needs to Read Paati’s Rasam
We all carry fond memories of our childhood—visiting our cousins every summer, coming home to a chilled glass of Paanakam, a bedroom clad with photographs—the list goes on. As we grow older, we learn to associate home with the people, the things, and the places that made us feel loved. Janaki and Dhwani Sabesh’s Paati’s […]
Pain, Anger, and Uncertainty: Why We Need to Learn from the Life of Artist Somnath Hore
Art is undoubtedly deeper than what we see on a canvas, print, or screen. It goes beyond any one form; art exists in our everyday life, but it takes an inquisitive mind to absorb it. Somnath Hore possessed such a mind. An Indian artist par excellence, Somnath’s preoccupation with the pain and suffering of others […]
Jamlo Walks: Sensitising Young Readers About Life During Lockdown
The COVID-19 induced pandemic caused a major shift in all of our lives. While this meant switching to virtual workspaces or watching children struggle with online classes for most of us, many were helpless as their lives were turned upside down in a matter of days. The lockdown was hard for all of us, but […]
Behind the Scenes: The Making of an Author
As Stephen King put it, “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.” Inspiration, creativity, motivation, rewriting, editing – these are a few terms that belong permanently in every author’s vocabulary. For Maulik Pancholy, the author of The Best At It, […]
The Magical World of Pictures and Stories: In Conversation with Thomas Taylor
Having begun his career as an illustrator whose debut project was the cover art for the immensely popular Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Thomas Taylor showcased his writing prowess through his first novel Malamander. Malamander, the first book in the The Eerie-on-Sea Mysteries, was an instant hit with kids, parents, teachers and librarians who […]
Tracing History for the Future Through Fiction: In Conversation with Donna Barba Higuera
Donna Barba Higuera joined us for the very first author interaction of the 2022 NLF Reading Challenge. Her second novel, The Last Cuentista, from which she performed the reading, received the prestigious John Newbery Medal and the Pura Belpré Children’s Author Award in 2022. It was highlighted early in the conversation how the book gives […]
One with Nature: In Conversation with Rohan Chakravarty
With quirky illustrations that seem to pop right out of your screen, author-illustrator Rohan Chakravarty walked us through his new book, Naturalist Ruddy: Adventurer. Sleuth. Mongoose. What really set apart this session of the NLF Reading Challenge was the purely interactive approach with which Rohan gripped everyone’s attention. Naturalist Ruddy is about your average mongoose […]
Hope in the Face of Hopelessness: In Conversation with Divya Arya
“There’s one question I get asked a lot, about the impact my book had on the two protagonists, Saumya and Duaa”. Divya Arya kickstarted her session for the NLF Reading Challenge by elaborating upon this very aspect. Her book Postbox Kashmir explores the intertwined lives of two girls, Saumya and Duaa, one letter at a […]
The Strong Waves of Empathy: In Conversation with Julian Sedgwick
For Julian Sedgwick, Tsunami Girl is the product of his lifelong immersion in Japanese culture, history, and beliefs, alongside his friendships rooted in the nation. It is a dedication to the communities who were affected by the 2011 Great Tōhoku Earthquake. During the NLF Reading Challenge, he spoke in detail about his experience of writing […]