The Gular Flower
by Rinchin and illustrated by Vipul Verma
“The Gular Flower” by Rinchin and illustrated by Vipul Verma. Published by Tulika. A story about discovering the secret of the gular or cluster fig flower through the eyes of a curious girl belonging to the Paardhi tribe.
The story starts off with Pirku and Saanish sorting a pile of waste. They are ragpickers belonging to the Paardhi tribe. Renchu, Pirku’s younger sister, was a curious little girl. She was also working with them. They would always keep her at a distance. They knew that Renchu desperately wanted to see the elusive gular flower. So they started teasing her by pretending that they had seen one.
Renchu could hardly stay away from them after that. She kept asking them about it and they went on with their pretence. Renchu had heard of many stories about the elusive flower. While some described it as red and big, others said it was pink and small or white and shining like a star. Which of these was true? She was eager to know. Also some said that it would bloom during the month of Magh while others said that it was during Kartik. When would it really bloom?
Will Renchu believe Saanish’s tall tale of sighting the elusive flower? Who else will she talk to about the flower? Will she ever get to unravel the mystery of the flower? Will she be able to see it? Read the story to see how she goes about her day and what happened. The author has expressed her own wonder at finding out about the secret of the gular flower through the character of Renchu. This is her second book featuring Renchu and she continues from where she left off in “The Trickster Bird”. While the story is focused on the flower, we get to see a typical day in the life of the Paardhis.
My 7.5 year old has liked the book from the time he was six. Both of us were excited to unravel the mystery of the flower and it was a new learning for us. Thank you Vidya Mani of Funky Rainbow for recommending this charming book! The book is apt for children aged 6+.
Recommended Age
The book is apt for children aged 6+.
Reasons to Read
The book creates awareness about the gular or cluster fig flower which is very interesting.
Where to buy from?
The publishers Tulika Books here.
An independent indie bookstore, Funky Rainbow, from where I buy many of my books.