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292:, she learnt about local life, and discovered old temples, churches and mosques. Hearing tales of local life, temple chariot festivals, the early morning flower market etc., related by people from diverse communities, inspired the characters and plot of her book. Although the book was written in 2003 it was rejected by a number of publishers for failing to follow established stereotypes, before being selected by
189:, this book is about a spider and rat magically turning into human children. As children with help from their vermin friends the duo gang up with the grandchildren of the herb shop owner to save it from a land shark. In the course of their adventures they come across an ancient riddle, solving which leads them to the treasure of
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noted the "unlikely protagonists drawn from the world of vermin and insects, a world which humans generally tend to ignore or treat with disgust and repulsion. The book straddles these two antithetical yet interdependent worlds with ease through its unlikely heroes, the rat
Rishabh and the bossy
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noted the unusual storyline and praised the book for a realistic portrayal of children and language. The reviewer praised Rishab as an adorable character and appreciated the book's humorous touches but found the decoding of the riddle weak. The
288:. A big spider weaving a web in a corner of the shop and a rat scurrying about the shop were the inspiration behind the main characters of the book, Rishab and Shashee. In the course of the author's conversations with long-term residents of
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It has been noted, apart from nuggets of history of
Bangalore, the novel also deals with ecological concerns, coexistence and the discovery of self-reliance. However, the author has denied having put in a moral in the book.
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found the description of
Bangalore's underworld populated with rodents and roaches and not crooks, as a world full of fantasy and adventure in the labyrinths of drains and nooks of the old Bangalore.
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193:, an ancient king who founded Bangalore. The vermin's transformation to humans in nature and thinking, and their improving in the face of adversity is an underlying theme of the book.
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Monideepa Sahu got the idea of writing this book after meeting the owner of a shop selling rare herbs while doing research for an article for the newspaper
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Many places described in the book are in the old parts of
Bangalore dating back to the times of the city's founding. The City Market, Avenue Road,
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unlike most children's books. They noted the mix of adventure, fantasy, insects, vermin and a little bit of love made the novel fast-paced. The
29:
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spider
Shashee (spelt with a double 'e' for astrological reasons!) who find themselves catapulted unwillingly into the world of humans."
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216:: the aged rat who transforms into a shy and awkward boy. He overcomes his shyness to become the hero of the novel by solving the
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226:: the very old spider who transforms into a bossy and opinionated girl. She plays a pivotal role in the novel.
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255:: the mysterious scar-faced villain who doubles as a loan shark and a land shark out to snatch the store
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220:, finding the treasure and becoming friends with a girl called Geeta whom he saved from an accident.
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232:: the owner of the rare herb store, an absent-minded old man worried about the future of his shop
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249:: orphaned grandchildren of Venkat Thatha. They discover and try to civilize Rishab and Shashie.
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Numerous insects and rats who bravely help Rishab and his friends in their quest
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Arts
Festival. The book was formally launched in Bangalore on 9 October 2010.
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177:. The book was longlisted for the Vodafone Crossword Book Award for 2011.
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404:"Longlist for the Vodafone Crossword Book Award Released"
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appreciated the fact that this novel as a fantasy set in
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169:. This fantasy novel for children is set in
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378:"Crossword Book Award Longlist announced"
238:: Venkat Thata's wife, deaf but practical
185:Set in a herb shop on a bustling road in
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434:"A neighbourhood peopled with all kinds"
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623:Madhukar, Jayanthi (18 October 2010).
380:. IBN live, Network 18. Archived from
764:Children's novels about mice and rats
510:Sahu, Monideepa (27 September 2010).
296:in 2008 as an anonymous pitch in the
7:
689:The publisher's webpage on the book
432:Sarma, Deepika (19 December 2012).
458:Shetty, Parinita (6–12 May 2012).
14:
784:Children's books about friendship
597:Mandana, Kavitha (October 2010).
359:, a 2016 book by Monideepa Sahoo
654:Kaul, Ranjana (November 2011).
568:R, KRITHIKA (31 January 2012).
258:Minor characters like the wise
719:Indian English-language novels
1:
779:Children's books set in India
406:. Asia Writes. Archived from
570:"Just a li'l touch of magic"
22:Riddle of the Seventh Stone
16:2010 novel by Monideepa Sahu
278:Development and Publication
218:riddle of the seventh stone
158:Riddle of the Seventh Stone
800:
625:"Into B'lore's underbelly"
599:"A Pair of Double Agents!"
734:Children's mystery novels
729:Children's fantasy novels
273:Kote Venkataramana Temple
262:and the helpful policeman
202:Kote Venkataramana Temple
115:Published in English
26:
724:Indian children's novels
759:Novels about friendship
744:Novels set in Bangalore
489:"An Enchanting Riddle"
356:Going home in the rain
274:
769:2010 children's books
709:Indian fantasy novels
512:"How I got published"
272:
749:Culture of Bangalore
438:The Hindu, Bangalore
334:Ranjana Kaul in the
754:Postcolonial novels
739:Novels set in India
23:
704:2010 Indian novels
275:
774:2010 debut novels
635:on 7 October 2011
491:. Unboxed Writers
204:are real places.
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104:Publication place
53:Pooja Pottenkulam
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714:Adventure novels
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629:Bangalore Mirror
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546:. 9 October 2010
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78:Children's novel
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460:"The Write Way"
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167:Monideepa Sahu
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149:978-8189884802
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119:9 October 2010
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668:. Retrieved
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637:. Retrieved
633:the original
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606:. Retrieved
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577:. Retrieved
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550:25 September
548:. Retrieved
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521:24 September
519:. Retrieved
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495:25 September
493:. Retrieved
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472:25 September
470:. Retrieved
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412:. Retrieved
408:the original
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388:25 September
386:. Retrieved
382:the original
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308:A review in
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181:Plot summary
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544:, Bangalore
443:27 December
337:Book Review
49:Illustrator
698:Categories
364:References
298:Kala Ghoda
241:The twins
208:Characters
191:Kempegowda
163:2010 novel
33:Book cover
574:The Hindu
542:The Hindu
414:27 August
311:The Hindu
260:bandicoot
187:Bangalore
171:Bangalore
129:Paperback
84:Publisher
537:"Launch"
349:See also
59:Language
304:Reviews
224:Shashie
63:English
670:29 May
639:29 May
608:28 May
579:28 May
294:Zubaan
247:Deepak
214:Rishab
127:Print
88:Zubaan
39:Author
463:(PDF)
323:India
253:Shark
243:Leela
175:India
161:is a
135:Pages
108:India
69:Genre
672:2012
666:(11)
664:XXXV
641:2012
610:2012
581:2012
552:2012
523:2012
497:2012
474:2012
445:2012
416:2012
390:2012
245:and
236:Ajji
200:and
144:ISBN
99:2010
516:DNA
165:by
138:164
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424:^
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75:,
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