Kai, Orla and Zak grew up together, their days spent on the patch of wilderness in between their homes, a small green space in a sprawling grey city. Music, laughter and friendship bind them together and they have big plans for their future – until Kai’s family suffers a huge loss.
Trying to cope with his own grief, as well as watching it tear his family apart, Kai is drawn into a new and more dangerous crowd, until his dreams for the future are a distant memory. Excluded from school and retreating from his loved ones, it seems as though his path is set, his story foretold. Orla, Zak and new classmate Om are determined to help him find his way back. But are they too late?
Talking about book recommendations with Sita Brahmachari
I was unable to attend the event with Sita due to migraine so @ninadouglas very kindly asked my questions. Please note that I am paraphrasing Sita’s answers, and this is not a word for word quote.
What do you consider when recommending books?
Sita explained that for her to recommend books they need to move her. She specifically highlighted that if story should take her on a journey of change.
Another key point was if the character stays with Sita. This doesn’t have to be every character in the book, but if one of them has that impact, that is a reason to recommend the book. Sita mentioned that especially in a debut book, if there is one character that stays with you then she would recommend the book even if everything wasn’t fully formed within the debut.
Sita also said that if the book was doing something unusual and out of the box that would be another reason. She highlighted Sunflower Sisters by Monika Singh Gangotra as a good example of this.
What makes you not recommend something?
If it appears that a write is working within a formula. If a reader would like to read something else but each book is the same thing again.
Sita also spoke about the concerns with stereotypes or the content damaging someone. Even if it wasn’t intentional this would not be a book she would pass on.
There was a small side-question: “How come all your books are always have the best covers/designs?” This was added because I just think Sita’s books are just stunning before you even open the page. 🙂
Sita joked that she is a bit bossy and messages ideas.
PRAISE FOR WHEN SHADOWS FALL:
“Full of empathy and hope … Kai’s story is a must read for teens to explore how easily things can fall apart but also how we can heal.” – A. M. Dassu, author of Boy, Everywhere
“A song of growing up, grief and the power of connection, When Shadows Fall is an illuminating and lyrical read” – Polly Ho-Yen, author of Boy in the Tower
“Beautifully told with real care, tenderness and heart” – Jasbinder Bilan, author of Asha and the Spirit Bird
“Sita’s lyrical prose captures the raw emotions of adolescence – of a young person navigating their way through grief and troubled times. A book for all of us.” – Gill Lewis, author of Swan Song
“A heart-wrenching story about loss and art and nature, about how things can fall apart and how friends stand beside one another no matter what” – Rashmi Sirdeshpande, author of How to Change the World
“Empathetic, original, searingly sad in places, but full of hope, & the power of friendship, art, music, wild places, and ravens” – Nicola Penfold, author of Where the World Turns Wild
“A gripping, tender, terrifying work… Impactful, innovative, and deeply moving.” – Sinéad O’Hart, author of The Eye of the North
Sita Brahmachari was born in Derby in 1966 to an Indian father from Kolkata, India and an English mother from the Lake District. She has a BA in English Literature and an MA in Arts Education.
Her many projects and writing commissions have been produced in theatres, universities, schools and community groups throughout Britain and America. Sita has lectured on intra-culturalism and Arts Education and her writing has been published in a number of journals and in On the Subject of Drama (Routledge).
Sita’s plays include touring productions by Tamasha Theatre Company including Lyrical MC and scripting and co-creating an adaptation of Sean Tan’s graphic novel The Arrival for Tamasha Theatre Company (published by Bloomsbury).
Her first book for Macmillan Children’s Books Artichoke Hearts won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, was nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal and was selected for the BookTrust Booked Up scheme in 2011. In 2014 it was selected as one of the top 50 books in cultural diversity since the 1950s by The Guardian.
http://www.sitabrahmachari.com
Twitter: @SitaBrahmachari
Luna's Little Library 