Our Rating
Plot Summary
The Girl Who was a Forest is a illustrated short biography of Janaki Ammal, the first Indian female botanist. A young Janaki from Thallassery, Kerala discovers her life calling and is determined not to conform to the then rigid rules of the society which shunned educations for girls, promoted an early marriage and charted a course for women within the confines of the four walls of the house. The story portrays how she discovered her inner calling with the support of her father and found solace in the study of nature.
Review
How Janaki Ammal overcome the prejudices of the early nineteenth century to pursue her love for nature is truly an inspiring tale. The green colored illustrations have done justice to the underlying theme of the story and beautifully captured the landscape of a small town in Kerala. The story also showcases the gentle father-daughter bond where the father not just supports her calling but pushes her to dream big. “Every seed is a promise of a forest.” - what an inspiring statement this is.
Lavanya Karthik not only pens this inspiring biography of Janaki Ammal, she has beautifully illustrated the book as well. Clever use of metaphorical comparison of birds flying versus the mangroves deeply rooted, brings out the strong story telling from Lavanya. Initially, every page has a reference of a bird, symbolizing Janaki’s longing to be a bird so that she can fly away. But, it seamlessly transitions into the deeply rooted and ever growing Mangrove forests when her father supports in her endeavors, thereby symbolizing growth and endless possibilities. Quite an apt life story to be a part of the Dreamers series from Duckbill. Highly recommended for young readers.
Moral of the story
- Follow your dreams no matter what the odds are!
Comprehension
Literal comprehension
- Janaki
- Achan, Janaki’s father
Inferential Comprehension
A coastal town of Kerala with mangrove forests.
He was interested in birds and noted down his observations.
Hornbill
Critical Thinking
- Why does Janaki wish to be a bird?
- Why does her father compare her to a mangrove seed?
- Where could Janaki’s mother be during the events of the story? - possibly at home looking after the family and chores as was evident in the society of the nineteenth century.
- Do you think “Achan” is the name of Janaki’s father? - No, i Malayalee word for father.
Application
- F.E.A.R acronym
- Forget everything and run
- Face everything and rise
- Keep searching for your true calling in life.
Vocabulary
- Forest
- Scientist
- Botany
- Wanderer
- Dream
- Prejudice
- Society
- Comfort
- Discover
- Mangrove
- Shimmer
- Observation
- Notebook
- Float
- Secret
- Enough
- Whisper
- Foliage
- Leagues
- Possibilities
- Solitude
- Discovery
- Learning
Publishing House
Duckbill - an imprint of Penguin Random House
Book Series
Dreamer series
Buy on Amazon
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