A Girl, a Tiger and a Very Strange Story by Paro Anand(Author) and Priya Kurian(Illustrator)
My take on the book:
Ten-year-old Junglee who is from a Pardhi family roamed and lived in forests along with her family and huge group of extended family. She is accustomed to the hard life in the forests, trained to hunt and kill small animals and survive the dangerous forest terrains. One evening when she missed returning back to her family, a violent storm suddenly raged through the forest hence forcing Junglee to take shelter on a tree till the next morning.
When Junglee returned to the place where her family last stayed she could not find anyone; a young tiger cub also got separated from his mother during the same storm and is wandering around cluelessly. Junglee initially assumed that a tigress will never abandon its kid and was hopeful it will return to its kid; she hoped the same about her family as well. When neither of them return, Junglee is left with no choice but to fend for herself while also looking out for the young cub whom she named as Raunaq.
Will Junglee be able to meet her family again and help Raunaq meet his mother, forms the rest of the story.
The concept of a young girl and a tiger cub unintentionally forced to live and grow together is very interesting. While the story begins in a fun way there are places where there is a deeper meaning to it — communication of a human and an animal without using language, living in harmony with an animal that humans generally fear about, while the same humans also hunt the animal for selling its body parts.
While the first half deals with the human and animal harmony, the second half delves into the more important topic of Pardhi families and the stigma they face even in today’s world. Parents in urban areas are worried about their kids’ screen time and the number of courses they should be competing in, while even today some sections of our society like the Pardhi families are denied basic education and respect.
To bring forth these important issues, the author weaves a fictional story that stays with the reader long after the story ends. The story narrated with prose and stunning illustrations will touch the hearts of kids and adults alike. Strongly recommended for all age groups to know about the life and struggles of Pardhi families.
My rating:
5/5.