Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, Dec 19: At the International Fest for Children’s Literature, children were seen participating in story-writing sessions and attending literary seminars. Heartened by the sight of children so interested in reading, we delve deeper to find out who their favourite writers are and what genres appeal to them. We find that romance, suspense and mythology attract them the most.
Fans seemed to abound of popular writers like Chetan Bhagat, Sidney Sheldon, Jeff Kinney, and Roald Dahl.
While primary school kids showed their love for genres such as fantasy and science fiction, the teenagers were more into romantic and mythological books. Among kids, favourite authors were Jeff Kinney, Roald Dahl and Ruskin Bond, while for high school-goers the favourites were Sidney Sheldon, Nicholas Sparks, Chetan Bhagat, Amish Tripathi and Ravinder Singh.
Uniformed in a blue skirt and white shirt, Jhilik Das, a Class XI student of KIIT international School, said, “I’ve read almost all of Nicholas Sparks’ books, like The Best of Me, Message in a Bottle, and A Walk to Remember. Due to my upcoming examinations, I’m not able to start a new one. I like mythology as well, but I’d still prefer the adventure and romanticism of Sidney Sheldon over them.”
Vishal Vaibhav, a Class XII student from Sainik School, said, “I’m a huge fan of Chetan Bhagat and recently finished his Half Girlfriend. I also like Ravinder Singh’s works and have read his Can Love Happen Twice several times.”
Ravi Singh, a publishing director from Speaking Tiger, said, “The reach of the international book publishers is huge and they have penetrated the Indian market so well that their books are easily accessible. Our generation is being brought up on these books and I think they feel more comfortable reading about the lifestyle and culture of the West more than our own. You can’t do much about it.”
Geronimo Stilton, published by Edizioni Piemme of Milan, emerged as the favourite among students aged less than 10.
“It’s a story about a mouse which goes on an adventure and then things go awry,” said Arnab Lath, a Class IV student.
Joining him, Viman Malik, Arnab’s classmate, said, “I also like that book very much.”
Subhangi Samal, another eleventh grader, said, “I’ve read the entire Twilight series and Isabella happens to be my favourite character. I also like Nicholas Sparks and Sidney Sheldon. Meg Cabot’s Mediator is among my favourites.”
Many other on-and-off young readers whom OrissaPost spoke to said they would surely read more if they got the time. As of now, they are content with reading storybooks and comics. Chetan Bhagat is a recurrent favourite. “I’m now going to begin reading the trilogy of Amish Tripathi – The Secret of Nagas,” said Deepak Sahoo.
One negative pattern that seemed to emerge out of this was that parents are not encouraging their children to read novels and storybooks. “I keep my novels hidden among stacks of textbooks to keep them from my parents. If they get to know, I will be in for a big scolding,” said Jhilik Das.
The children admit their reading range is still limited, and is in need of a revamp. “My parents don’t know I’ve been reading Chetan Bhagat’s books. I don’t think I would like them to know,” Deepak Sahoo admitted.
