Are We All the Same? Exploring the A-Z of Culture
By Ananya Malde, Grade 11 Day 2 of the Neev Literature Festival 2023 witnessed an enlightening and engaging event, The A-Z of Culture, conducted by writer and publisher, Akhila Das Blah. She began by posing a fundamental question, “Are we all the same?” This interactive session managed to capture the audience’s attention, leaving both adults […]
Changing Times, Changing Values: The Lives of Digital-Era Teenagers
By Kavya Arjun, Grade 11 Renée Watson, Ashim Ahluwalia, Jane de Suza and Dhooleka Raj broke all taboos during their panel discussion Changing Times, Changing Values held on Day 1 of the Neev Literature Festival. The session saw four powerhouses, highly acclaimed in their respective fields, offering their perspectives on the complexities of navigating teenage […]
Shabnam Minwalla on Inhabiting Parallel Timelines
By Kabir Basu, Grade 10 The second half of Day 1 of the Neev Literature Festival 2023 began with a most joyous and uplifting performance by Kapil Pandey, encouraging the audience to join in, sing and dance. The mood was set for celebrated, award-winning author Shabnam Minwalla’s session Inhabiting Parallel Timelines; an eager audience waited […]
A Closer Look At Your Neighbourhood: An Illustration Masterclass with Habib Ali and Canato Jimo
By Diya Shetty, Grade 10 The skilled Habib Ali, illustrator of the NBA 2023 winning wordless book My Street, and Canato Jimo, Art Director of Pratham Books, kicked off the masterclasses on Day 1 of the Neev Literature Festival 2023 with their session Neighbourhood Depictions. The air was buzzing with excitement. We began by discussing […]
History, Humour and Animal Rights | Young Readers Write
By Ayaan Gupta, Grade 3 Uncle Nehru, Please Send an Elephant! is a book written by Devika Cariapa and illustrated by Satvik Gade. This is a very interesting book. In this book, the author has tried to teach us a part of our real Indian history by narrating a series of real-life events which took […]
“VAmazing”: Reading When the World Went Dark | Young Readers Write
By Riya Bopanna, Grade 7 When the World Went Dark by Jane De Suza, shortlisted for the Neev Book Award 2022 in the Junior Readers category is a heartfelt novel that explores the feeling of loss from the perspective of a lively nine year-old girl. Swara is not happy. Her country is in lockdown and […]
Comprehending Suffering: Reading Young ‘Jamlo Walks’ and ‘Wounds’ | Young Readers Write
The Neev Book Award 2022 shortlist puts the spotlight on Indian lives. A lived reality numerous young readers picked up on while reading the shortlisted books are the tales of suffering, pain, and systemic inequalities. They speak to readers regardless of how old they are. Two students from Neev Academy, one from Grade 4 and […]
Many Places, Same Story: Reading That Night | Young Readers Write
That Night, a picture book by Bijal Vachharajani shortlisted for the Neev Book Award 2022 in the Emerging Readers category, speaks to readers of all ages. Be they seven or seventeen, this poignant tale has moved plenty of young children. Here are two student voices. Grade 10 student Noyonika Arun writes: The book That Night […]
The Beauty in Eternal Memory: Reading Paati’s Rasam | Young Readers Write
By Aida Sandy Shree, Grade 10 Paati’s Rasam is a picture book, written by the mother-daughter duo Janaki Sabesh and Dhwani Sabesh, and illustrated by Pallavi Jain. It follows the story of Malli, a little girl who loves her grandmother, and explores the transitory nature of life, and the impact it leaves behind. Through emotive […]
What Would You Do If Elephants Ruined Your Backyard? | Young Readers Write
By Neyamukil, Grade 3 What would you do, if elephants came and ruined your backyard? That is what happens to a girl called Bumoni in the story Bumoni’s Banana Trees. First, what is this story about? It is about a girl called Bumoni who lives in Assam. Her house has a BIG backyard FULL of […]