The Story and the Song

by Manasi Subramaniam and illustrated by Ayswarya Sankaranarayanan

“The Story and the Song” by Manasi Subramaniam and illustrated by Ayswarya Sankaranarayanan. Published by Karadi Tales. A lovely folk tale from Tamil Nadu adapted for children. The theme is the power of stories and songs. From times immemorial, stories and songs have entertained people and this legacy will continue forever. What happens to stories which are not told or songs which are not sung?  Do they get buried under the sands of time or do they see the light of the day sometime? 

A young school teacher named Parvathi lived in a small village in Tamilnadu. She was getting married to Kamban who was a tradesman. The village was full of festivities for the happy occasion. Amid all the excitement, people were gifting wonderful wedding gifts to Parvathi. 

Thayi who was the oldest and wisest woman in the village had a special gift for Parvathi. Though she was poor and could not afford  to buy anything for Parvathi, she wanted to share a story with her and teach her a song as well. Her only request to Parvathi was to share the story and the song with everyone that she knew. Otherwise her gift would be in vain. Parvathi listened to Thayi narrate the story with rapt attention. She also loved the song that Thayi sang. She made Thayi sing it multiple times for her. 

After the wedding, Parvathi got immersed in her work and her new responsibilities. She started helping Kamban with his work in addition to looking after her new home. She completely forgot about her promise to Thayi that she would share the story and the song. She no longer had the time for stories or songs. What happened next?  The story needs to be read of course ;) I have been reading this story for the last two years with my seven year old. A dear friend had lent the book to us and we ended up keeping it as my son loved it. The illustrations are gorgeous and the scenes from the village have come out so well. My son could relate well to these scenes as we had done two back to back trips to Tamil Nadu just before reading this book. 

Where to buy from?

1. The publishers Karadi Tales here.

2. An independent indie bookstore, Funky Rainbow, from where I buy many of my books.