Apoorva B Ashok

I'm over the moon! A book I've co-translated, "Putaani Bharateeyaru", the Kannada version of "Little Indians" by @pikanani_writes , published by @awwabooks releases this Saturday! Venue: Funky Rainbow, Bangalore @travelling_bookshop Date: 15th Feb, 1130 am Do register and join us !

Dedicated to those who can "get it cheaper on Amazon" Amazon price: ₹1250, after a 15% "discount" Bee's Bookspace price: ₹595, which is the actual MRP! When you buy from Amazon, you run the risk of * fake prices * pirated and used books * books with pages missing * hidden charges When you buy from Bee's Bookspace, you get * transparent pricing * new books with no errors * no hidden charges And yes, this book is available with us for sale at the actual price #supportlocal #indiebookstore #raisingreaders

#BeesBookReview Title: Unlocked Author: @balaji_venkataramanan1 Illustrator: @tanvibhat.draws Publisher: Duckbill Suitable for : 6+ A #hookbook is perfect for children who are ready to read a little more text than a picture book has. Hook books have lesser text than the #holebooks. This one has 40 pages. The illustration on the cover and the title hint at memories, maybe treasures. But the story begins with Mom telling Ravi that they must stay with grandpa as he isn’t well. Ravi doesn’t like grandpa’s house because it “feels like a hospital” but he goes anyway. What follows is the bond that develops and is brought to life in the most heartwarming way through both words and illustrations. When Ravi asks Grandpa how he feels, he replies “Like a game of snakes and ladders”. What a perfect way to describe a varying state of health every day! Ravi also finds a mysterious locked box in Grandpa’s room. When he asks Grandpa what it holds, he get all sorts of answers. The boxes, the games and the conversations are the metaphors through which Grandpa gives Ravi life lessons, while preparing him for the inevitable. The tender dialogues stay with you long after you’ve finished the book and the illustrations just superbly complement the narrative with the perfect expressions on every face for every page. I would highly recommend this book to adults too! (Disclosure: I received this book from penguin for review) #BeesBookspace #RaisingReaders #ReadingIsFun #Penguinsters #duckbill #penguinrandomhouse #fiction #youngadult #indianauthors #indianbooksforkids

Registrations open for 18th-22nd May! Looking forward to exploring with the arts, expressing ourselves through theatre, writing, art and movement and creating our very own books with all our young participants @toololibrary {Bangalore children’s workshops, Expressive Arts, Play, Summer Camp, Arts-based engagement, Creativity, Books, Theatre, Movement, Writing} #bangaloresummercamp #childrenworkshop #creativeengagement

As a book club host, I’m always delighted to see children discussing books/writing reviews. I was lost for words when the parents of one of my book club members contacted me to share that their son had started running a library in their apartment! And not just that, he’s encouraging the members of his home library to write reviews too! Swipe to see the reviews that his library members have penned. I’m in awe of this 11-year-old and the scope of work he’s doing! To say that I’m on cloud 9 won’t suffice, the idiom will at least have to be cloud 99! #readingislife #readingmentor #bookclubhost #raisingreaders

In March, I was invited to facilitate a few topics on planning sessions for children and library curation by the amazing Buguri Library, the children’s library run by HasiruDala. I am familiar with how their libraries are run and the exemplary work they do, opening up avenues of thought and expression in the most challenging locations. To say that I was nervous addressing this group of talented and motivated librarians would be an understatement. They made me feel at home right from the get go. Over two days, I got to learn from stalwarts like Thejaswi Shivanand and Nayan Mehrotra and from the sharing of experiences by the Buguri team. It was heartbreaking to know of the challenges the librarians faced while setting up their libraries and equally heartwarming to know of the positive changes they have brought about in their communities. I stepped in to share the few things I knew about libraries, and walked out enriched by their thoughts and experiences, reassured that libraries are one of the few places that offer us a glimmer of hope, of a better future. #librarylove #facilitator #librarycuration #bookthemes #kannadafacilitator

In March, I visited Hassan for the The Hassan LitFest, organised splendidly by @vijayaschoolhassan . THLF was for 2 days, I was a facilitator on Day 2. I was delighted to know that one of their teachers had attended my read-alouds at Makkala Hubba in January and had guided children of higher grades to conduct a read aloud on Day 1 on similar lines 😊 Everything was perfectly organised and children were present right on time for read-aloud sessions in the morning. Post lunch, I conducted 3 workshops for middle-graders on creative writing using storybooks where we explored wordless books, nonsense verse with a mix of science and a Kannada book as well. It was a wonderful experience for me, facilitating outside Bengaluru for the first time and I wholeheartedly thank @vijayaschoolhassan for their vision and brilliant execution of The Hassan LitFest. #beesbookspace #hassan #thlf #thehassanlitfest #vijayaschool #creativewritingforkids #readaloudsforkids

In February, I had the opportunity to curate and conduct sessions for parents of anganwadi children at the Anganwadi Habba, organised by @makkalajagriti . The intent was for parents to strengthen their connection with children through oral storytelling. My focus was on using everyday items to create simple stories, where children are the main problem solvers. I wanted to encourage parents to revisit their childhood and narrate the stories that they grew up listening to, so that children could get a glimpse of parents’ childhoods. The event was held in two locations on different dates and what was consistent was the effort and interest by the Makkala Jagriti team and their YUVA volunteers in setting up and executing the event. The teams efforts in the early childhood education space was clearly visible in the parents’ interest to visit and assimilate the takeaways from each section of the Anganwadi Habba. #anganwadihabba #storytellingforparents #dailystories #storiesforchildhood #kannadasessions

In January, I was invited to set up and facilitate a reading corner as a part of “Makkala Hubba”, a part of BLR Hubba. The absolutely fabulous @kahaanibox library were my partners here and it was 11 days of books, stories and happiness. Through tbe week, children from government schools were invited for read-alouds, book activities and reading and on the weekends, we had children sitting on the laps of their parents and reveling in stories! Some children even came for multiple sessions on multiple days, and we had to keep reading aloud new stories! What touched my heart was the way @makkalahubba was a space for all children. Children of all ages and backgrounds were welcome at all stalls of the makkala hubba, @bhawnajaimini made sure of that. When Neha and I were setting up the books the day before the inauguration, children of the construction workers nearby strolled in. We asked them to walk in later to enjoy the books, they asked if they could help us set it up! Starting then, they became daily visitors. Kudos to @kahaanibox for walking the talk and sharing my belief that the library is a space for everyone. On the last day, one of the kids got me a chocolate and said, “akka, ivattu nan birthday” (akka, it is my birthday today) and insisted I have it! #humblingandheartwarming. (My expression in the pic above was how I was on all days! I truly felt the love and warmth from the children <3) #readalouds #makkalahubba #beesbookspace

Yesterday was the author session with Monika Bhatkhande! We'd all read her latest book "The mystery of the star sapphire" and come prepared to interview her :) 3 children couldn't make it, but they sent in their questions via email which Monika graciously answered:) What do we do in author sessions? Pic 1 : Take book group pics Pic 2: Get a peek into the author's research.. The old Bombay Pic 3: Same location, Mumbai! More pics to follow!

In this five-session creative journey, children will explore creative writing with the help of arts, nature, theatre and storytelling. Through playful group and individual activities, they will express ideas, explore possibilities and create their own handmade book. The journey culminates in a sharing presentation. The focus is on the process, building curiosity and helping each child discover and express their unique voice. {Bangalore, workshops, children, nature, arts}

Sent out this curated set for 53 anganwadis in Gadag dt recently:) At a budget of ₹660 per set, we were able to fit in: 1 accordion book 1 book of poems 1 wordless picture book 1 thumbprint - art story book 6 picture storybooks apt for children aged 3-6y. How did we do?