This is Shruti’s first book, written when she was 10, as a student in class IV of the Hindu Senior Secondary School in Chennai.
She started writing stories when she was six years old, first on paper and now on the laptop. She spends at least an hour, everyday, typing stories, unless she is suffering from “the writer’s block”.
Her keen sense of observation of the current events of the day also prompted her to design a newspaper at the time, covering the current topic of interest, sports, general information and entertainment. Her other interests include learning ballet, watching cricket matches with her father, listening to film songs, doodling pictures (some for her stories) and playing the keyboard.
Frailties of the Heart
Every one of us has a frailty or a problem. But how do we tackle it? Do we fight it or do we just let it dominate us?
Buy Paperback
Straight from a Child’s Heart – Vol 5
In this volume, the author introduces her pet, Timmy, a talking dog. We see in the stories of her pet, a range of emotions- the pain of losing somebody to someone else, pangs of separation, a spark of hope, jealousy, romance, grief, anger and finally, starting anew. There are other short stories such as Baby Boo for Siva which revolves around how an individual repents his hastiness (though not in that moral-lecture way). Ever heard of a talking fan? Just open these pages to read a conversation between a talking fan and a mechanic. The Rebel's Wife deals with the subject of keeping that spark of hope alive and Uncle Turns Chef reminds you not to be so absorbed in your work! Cricket in My Country's Villages is a story of an interesting visit to a village in India. One Door Closes tackles a sensitive yet important subject. The Lamp of Hope is based on the aftermath of 2004 tsunami. We come back with some more poems such as how it is to be turn a teen, if an old lady can still be pretty and the uses of trees.
Buy Paperback
Straight from a Child’s Heart – Vol 4
This book is a collection of 5 stories and 7 poems – another patient narrates her visit to Dr. Palu’s clinic (remember we met her in Vol 3), the Ratra kids (yes, those haughty teenagers and that sweet brother of theirs) and Manish and Manisha go off on their cycles to earn pocket money and the Aeppe series gets replaced by The Mew Chronicles, another nostalgic ride down the lane of childhood. The Throne of Miedue is Shakespearean-like. The Ghost House in Vancouver series continues with Harry, Sanne and Samantha solving a mystery. This book comes back with more poems, in English and for the first time in Hindi too, on a friend, emotions, rules and a search, to name a few.
Buy Paperback
Straight from a Child’s Heart – Vol 2
This is a collection of ten stories – the way a child celebrates Holi (the festival of colours), a magic vessel brought to the house of the Rajans' by the boys' old grandmother, the Diwali dhamaka, a dog's first term at boarding school, the life of two poor children, an action-packed mystery story, a weird woman who moves into an apartment complex, a house inhabited by ghosts, the life of a young man and two young women and the first year of children in their new boarding school.
Buy Paperback
Straight from a Child’s Heart – Vol 1
This is a collection of five stories – a parent’s nostalgic trip to childhood, school and examinations, the experience of moving into a new city, a detective duo who get drawn into a mystery involving a robbery, and a story about a family living on the Zodiac planet facing a threat from the Earth people.
Buy Paperback
Straight from a Child’s Heart – Vol 3
This book is a collection of 14 stories and a poem – an eventful ‘poonal’ (thread ceremony), a traveller goes in search of the Sivaraman family, the lives of three friends in Class III C, a Haryanvi family arrives in Chennai, a visit to Dr. Palu’s clinic, an Englishwoman’s life in Khadi Village, near Mewar, Rajasthan, stories of two friends with a common mission, a story of how a thief hides his real identity from his family, the life-story of two poor British siblings set in England, a story of two Indian siblings which traces their life from Kashmir up to the end in Shimla, a new series at Norwegian Meadow School and a poem expressing a daughter’s reflections about her mother. There are also some stories which take off from where we left them in Vol 2 such as Detective Edward who solves his second mystery in this book, another ghost story set in Ghost House, Vancouver and the kids are back for another exciting second term at Coco Tree House.
Buy Paperback