Books published by publisher Ratna Sagar

� In this unique collection of stories, Ruskin Bond recalls his school days in a boarding school with humour and affection. He remembers the honour of being a Boy Scout, the pleasure of belonging to a secret club, the discovery of his passion for reading, and much more. � Beautifully illustrated by a leading Indian children's illustrator. �Ages 13 to 16 years.

Manorama�Jafa's�The Parrot and the Mynah, published by�Ratna�Sagar,�is a short story of foes-turned-friends. It narrates the tale of�Mitthu�the parrot and�Meenu�the mynah who argue over being the best singer. Angered by their loud verbal duel, the other birds drive them out. As�Mitthu�and�Meenu�spend a dark and lonely night, they decide to become friends again. The next morning they sing a beautiful song together. Delighted by their sweet song, all the birds accept them back into the group, and�Mitthu�and�Meenu�become 'friends for ever'. Beautiful illustrations by�Reboti�Bhushan�bring each scene of the story to life. Some highlights of the book are: �� Full-colour�illustrations�by famous children's books illustrator�Reboti�Bhushan� Reading for beginners

Manorama�Jafa's�My Mother Taught Me Origami,�published by�Ratna�Sagar,�uniquely combines story as well as craft activity in a seamless manner. It is the story of little�Niko, a girl of Indo-Japanese origin, who lives with her sister�Minu, her Indian father, and Japanese mother. The book narrates how�Niko's�mother teaches her and her sister the art of basic Origami.�Jafa's�story is accompanied by�Konomi�Hoshina's�illustrations, along with�Hitomi�Ashta's�step-by-step instructions on�folding paper�to create beautiful Origami. The highlights of the book are: �� Combination of story and craft activity�in one book� Full-colour�illustrations�by�Konomi�Hoshina Easy-to-follow step-by-step Origami instructions�by�Hitomi�Ashta

Can there be life without the sun, air, water or soil? All four make up our wonderful world. What would happen if something happened to one of them? Dilip M Salwi, the master storyteller, tells us in this beautiful picture book. The four elements come alive and share their lives with us. They are sometimes happy, sometimes moody and sometimes naughty. Atanu Roy, the famous artist, has given the elements unforgettable beauty. Here's a book you will want to treasure for its loveliness. Ages 9 to 12 years

� Can there be life without the sun, air, water or soil? �All four make up our wonderful world. �What would happen if something happened to one of them? �Dilip M Salwi, the master storyteller, tells us in this beautiful picture book. �The four elements come alive and share their lives with us. �They are sometimes happy, sometimes moody and sometimes naughty. � � Atanu Roy, the famous artist, has given the elements unforgettable beauty. �Here's a book �you will want to treasure for its loveliness. � Ages �9 to 12 years

Children of the Magic Pen, published by Ratna Sagar, is the result of a collaborative exercise by members of AWIC, the Indian section of IBBY. It was penned under the guidance of noted theatre personality Feisal Alkazi, who subsequently directed four successful performances of the play by his theatre group. This lively and humorous play is suitable for the middle school stage. Its theme of the immortality of books is greatly relevant, especially in times of distracting and addictive social media. The play brings together some of the most memorable and lovable characters from literature and media - the clever and sreet smart Aladdin who lives on his wits; Long John Silver from Treasure Island singing his trademark 'Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum'; the cackling witch from Hansel and Gretel who evokes fear in children; and the endearing pair of the bandar (monkey) and the magarmach (crocodile) from the Indian classic Panchatantra. These characters come face-to-face with P L Travers' Mary Poppins, the perennial friendly, singing nanny, who always carry an umbrella and a carpetbag; Satyajit Ray's creation, the detective Feluda; the 'Off with their heads' Queen of Hearts and the scared White Rabbit of Alice in Wonderland; and finally the robot R2D2 from Star Wars. As they travel together with the protagonist, a young girl, in search of the Magic Castle, they face many challenges. Disunity and greed break the travellers into two groups, with the rebellion led by Long John Silver. Although the group reunite, they face new hurdles. First, they meet Rangeela Raja and Rangeen Rani, symbolic of the distraction offered by the glamorous world of cinema and television, which threaten the habit of book reading. In spite of every difficulty, the Girl and her storybook friends march on. The characters fall into the Pit of Oblivion, symbolic of their erasure from our memory and our lives. On the girl's earnest request, Rangeen Raja jumps in the pit to save them. Soon after, they are attacked by Termites, which later transform into Computer Viruses, but are destroyed by the eponymous hero of the Prince of Persia video game. Finally, as they reach their destination, they realize that the Magic Castle is actually a library, a haven for books. The girl is awarded a lifetime membership of the library and a magic Gold Card that will transport her to the library any time she wishes, for escorting all the characters to their destination safely and thus giving them the treasure of immortality. The unique and symbolic play is a reminder of the importance of books in our lives and what we may do to preserve them. The journey of the girl and the fictional characters towards immortality and perennial readership is a metaphor of this need to keep books alive.