Kashmira Sheth's Blog, page 2

When you live in a cold climate, winters get too long. The bright side
of it is during the holidays, everyone stays together. We talk, watch
movies, play games and eat. Maybe eat too much. And that's not the bright
side of it.

It is time when the New Year's resolutions are still fresh and most
people haven't abandoned them. So far, I'm doing well with my yoga
routine and exercise. But I haven't had much luck in cutting down
caffeine, though. Maybe when the days get longer I can do it.

I'm...

I'm thrilled to post short reviews for Boys without Names from two esteemed, award-winning authors, Patricia McCormick and Jacqueline Woodson:
 
"Kashmira Sheth gives a name to the pernicious practice of child bondage in her unforgettable portrait of Gopal, a boy enslaved in a grueling factory job in India. And she shows the power of story telling to inspire acts of kindness and courage in even the darkest of situations."
- Patricia McCormick, author of National Book Award Finalist SOLD...

My next novel, , will be published on
1/19/10

Here is the brief description:

For eleven-year-old Gopal and his family, life in their
rural Indian village is over: We stay, we starve, his baba has warned. So they
must flee to the big city of Mumbai in hopes of finding work and a brighter
future. Gopal is eager to help support his struggling family until school
starts, so when a stranger approaches him with the promise of a factory job, he
jumps at the offer.


But Gopal...

Like many childrens' writers I end up reading mostly
childrens' literature from picture books to young adult novels. But I
do belong to a book club where we read mostly adult titles. This way I
read at least a dozen books that are not for children. Currently I am
reading three books: The Girls from Ames: A Story of Women and a
Forty-Year Friendship by Jeffrey Zaslow, Blue Boy by Rakesh Satyal and
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski. Each one is quite a
different story but I have...

The ALA was fantastic. It reminded me of Navratri festival in India
where we dance until 2:00 AM. During Navratri, all of the girls were
excited and eager to participate. The beats of drums mixed with
thousands of footsteps and the halls vibrated. Of course there was no
dancing at ALA but all of the participants were just as excited and
eager about literature. The halls pulsated with exuberant mental energy.
Yoshiko Jaeggi and I received the APALA (Asian/Pacific American
Literature Award...

Award Ceremony for APALA Award (Monsoon Afternoon), Chicago McCormick Place West (MCP) W 196b

10:00am–11:00am: Signing with Yoshiko Jaeggi, Peachtree Booth # 1613
11:00am–12:00pm: Kashmira signing, Hyperion Booth # 2247
1:00pm–2:00pm: Signing with Yoshiko Jaeggi, Peachtree Booth # 1613

"Why is the theme of education so important to you?" A student asked me.

It opened up a flood of emotions for me. How without education women I
knew had suffered. How my widowed great-aunt fought to go to a bigger
city so she could pursue a teaching profession. How my father supported
one of his sisters who wished to study Sanskrit at the Banaras Hindu
University. I realized what the student had asked came deeply from who
I am.
Over and over again I am amazed by young readers' insightful...

I was interviewed by Judy Bryan and she has posted it along with information about my books on:


http://community.livejournal.com/kidlit_central/35306.html

I met Judy in 2002 at a SCBWI-WI conference and we talked about forming
a critique group - we both are still on it. Over the years, she has been
an invaluable partner in my writing journey.

I hope you enjoy it. Thank you, Judy!

HAPPY DIWALI and SAAL MUBAREK!