Curious Tales From The Himalayas
by Shaguna Gahilote and Prarthana Gahilote and illustrated by Jit Chowdhury
“Curious Tales From The Himalayas” by Shaguna Gahilote & Prarthana Gahilote and illustrated by Jit Chowdhury. Published by Penguin. A collection of fascinating folktales from various regions that are part of the majestic Himalayas.
There are eleven wonderful tales from the mystical folklore of the lands blessed to be along the Himalayas, like Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Tibet, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, Assam, North Bengal and Arunachal Pradesh. As diverse and interesting as it can get! Meet a hungry red fox who has an unexpected encounter with a meditating monk frog in Nubra valley, a guru and his student trekking through Himachal Pradesh and finding a magical herb with disastrous effects, a couple fighting over a bowl of Thenthuk in Hemis, a group of young monks who sprout wings in Arunachal Pradesh, two rivers from Sikkim who are in love with each other and so on.
The tales feature the flora and fauna of the region as well as the people and their lifestyle. They also portray the difficult terrain and hardships faced by the people living there. There are unusual heroes and heroines in the stories who are ready to rise to the occasion and face such unexpected challenges. There is magic too. The stories will make one yearn to go to the Himalayas and soak in the beauty of nature. Each of the stories ends with a footnote about the theme of the story and also talks of different versions of the same story found in other Himalayan regions. We found this very interesting and informative.
My eight year old loved reading this book with me. He had been after me to order this one after reading the other book from this series called “Curious Tales From the Desert”. His joy knew no bounds when we got this book. He says that the book is much better than he expected it to be. We just breezed through these stories in between the memoirs of Ruskin Bond and some art mystery stories. It was like reliving our recent vacation in Uttarakhand. In fact my son was wondering if it might have been better to have read it before the trip. We could have discussed the story from Kumaon with locals during our trip there. We are now hoping that another book comes out by the authors and wondering what the theme of the book might be after the desert and the Himalayas.
Recommended Age
The book is apt for children aged 9/10+ for self reading and can be read aloud to slightly younger children like 7/8+.
Reasons to Read
The book has a lovely collection of lesser known folktales from the Himalayan regions. These tales have been passed down several generations orally.
The stories give a glimpse into the lives of people living around the Himalayan regions and their culture.
Where to buy from?
An independent bookstore, Funky Rainbow, from where I buy many of my books.