CHENNAI: It was the challenge parents faced, including me, as we planned holidays for our children. I saw my friends printing notes from websites, putting together travel dockets, and searching for resources that would get their kids interested in their holiday destinations. But this wasn’t really an optimal approach, and the aspiration to create a travel resource for children led to the Cities of Adventure series,” shares author Rishi Piparaiya, discussing his latest book series. The Secret of the Snallygaster, The Race to Phar Lap’s Saddle, Framed in Hollywood, and The Men from B.A.G.E.L — the first four titles in the series takes readers on whirlwind escapades, introducing them to global cities including Washington, Melbourne, Los Angeles and New York.
“My kids were around 12 and 10 at the time, and spending time with them gave me several ideas. Also, writing for children had been on my mind for a while; one of the consistent feedback I got while attending a creative writing course at the University of Cambridge was to look at writing children’s books. Finally, I love travelling, and this project allowed me to travel the world with a definite purpose. So, I think all of this came together to give birth to this series,” details the globetrotter.
Excerpts follow:
Writing a travel story amid a pandemic must have been challenging.
On the positive side, I finished my world trip a few months before the pandemic started. I had travelled for five months across 55 global cities and therefore, I did not lack material or inspiration. It is a good feeling to be able to wake up and escape, through your writing, to wherever in the world you would like to be, even though everything around you is in a complete lockdown. I did not have a specific writing ritual per se, all the free time that I had — even if in spurts — was used to work on these books.
Do you think the aesthetics of characters in children’s books have changed in the past decade?
I have not kept up as much with children’s literature as I did as a child. I think reading itself as a habit is slowly dying, and the concern is how we can protect that. But books and entertainment tend to mirror society, so I believe characters in books right now are a lot more mature and emotionally sensitive than they were a few decades ago. It could be harder for someone like me to adapt to new trends — there was a lot of resistance from advisors on the names Neil and Tara for my characters, for example. It was too blasé, people thought and I needed more ‘modern’ names. But well, I guess I am still stuck in the Enid Blyton era of Anne, George, Julian, Dick and Timmy! The morals of my stories though reflect a lot of the challenges that kids these days face: bullying, an overdose of technology, busy and stressed parents and so on.
Representation, inclusivity and diversity have become important topics of discussion. How can these be consciously integrated within children’s literature?
Books need to reflect the current state of society if they have to be accepted by the readers. And children are far more discerning and impressionable than adults. So, authors must address these issues — in a fair and unbiased manner — through their work. Authors have the freedom — one hopes at least — to create characters, plots, and scenes without any limitations other than their imagination. They should experiment with their characters, push the boundaries on plots, and use the power of their work to influence readers positively.
The Race to Phar Lap’s Saddle also draws focus on the need for ‘slow living’. Does this school of thought come from your personal experiences?
It is human nature to either dwell on the past or worry about the future when it is the present that is most important and in our control. And this lack of mindfulness is only getting worse with technology, modern-day stresses, and now a pandemic to boot. Every Cities of Adventure, in addition to being a window to the global city that it’s based in, also has an underlying moral that I would like children to reflect upon. Like you rightly said, the message in The Race to Phar Lap’s Saddle is for families to live in the present and enjoy the time they have together, rather than be absorbed in work or devices. My personal experiences have certainly shaped this. I left a high-profile financial services career to focus on my passions — whether travel, writing, or mentoring young entrepreneurs. Because I realised that the corporate rat race never ends — one can keep accumulating success, wealth and honours, but that comes at the cost of time. Which, in my view is the most valuable asset we have.
Are there plans of exploring Indian cities in your books as well?
Yes, most definitely! I will turn to some Indian cities, especially Mumbai and Delhi, once I have finished my initial set of 12 international ones. There is a lot of domestic and international tourism to these two cities, and I want Indian and international kids to have a lot more affinity to our major cities.
For details, visit: www.citiesofadventure.com. The books are available on amazon.in
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Favourite children’s author
Enid Blyton
Favourite destination
Spain
Favourite travel-themed book
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
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Self-help
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Atomic Habits by James Clear