I clearly remember my first encounter with Roopa Pai’s books. A few months back, I visited a Crossword bookstore in my city to buy a few books for my son’s close friend. I’ll be honest when it comes to picking books for gifting purposes I usually stick to the classics. Somehow, that day, the books that I had in my mind for the kiddo were unavailable, so I started browsing through the bookshelves. One such shelf had ‘The Gita: For Children’ and ‘The Vedas and Upanishads for Children’ both written by Roopa Pai stacked together. The book covers, the topics written about and the illustrations in the book convinced me to pick both books along with a few more for the gift. I must add here, the boy finished both books during his summer vacation and loved them to the core! (That’s what was reported to me by my khaas khabri, my son :p) So when I chanced upon this new book, ‘The Yoga Sutras for Children by Roopa Pai‘ I had to get it for my little bookworm/bibliophile. Here’s my honest review of this children’s book by this Indian author.
List of Contents
Book in a Snapshot
Book Title – The Yoga Sutras for Children
Author – Roopa Pai
Genre – Self-Help: Healthy Living & Wellness
Publisher – Hachette India
Publishing Date – 27 June 2023
Pages – 296
Available Formats – Paperback Edition & Kindle Edition
Price – Rs. 292 & Rs. 260 respectively on Amazon for Paperback and Kindle versions
Available Online at – Amazon.com
The Yoga Sutras for Children by Roopa Pai Summary
Yoga as most of us know it is in the form of the asanas. While India is changing, kids in school are being taught to practice yoga both on the physical and mental levels. Slowly through them we the adults are also getting to know yoga in its truest sense. It’s quite surprising how the profound knowledge we possessed in India long ago is now turned reduced to the ignorance we experience today. Nevertheless, books such as this help in bringing back knowledge to us common people. The yoga sutras given out by Maharishi Patanjali almost 2000 years back form the backbone of this book. In this book, Roopa Pai delves into the concepts of mental well-being using knowledge from Samadhipada and Sadhanapada.
What Didn’t Work:
- There are some places where the mention of different religious books or scriptures has been made. In my opinion, when it comes to kids of today’s India, one needs to tread carefully while discussing religion. I feel co-relating a particular concept with different religions for explanation purposes is alright. However, a comparison of sorts with other religious teachings could be avoided.
What Worked in the Book
- The book is a breezy read. The reader is not left feeling bloated with the heaviness of the concept after every food-for-thought chapter.
- The regular nudges/ call-to-action that the author gives to the reader in the form of ‘Do It’ & ‘Think about it’ in each chapter makes the content of each chapter relatable and practicable.
- The front cover page done by Neelima P Aryan is beautiful and has a kind of calming effect that matches the book’s core concept. Sayan Mukherjee has done an amazing job with monochrome black-and-white illustrations. These make the concept of Yoga Sutras more engaging.
- Author’s introduction of I assume Maharishi Patanjali as ‘Maharishi P’and the conversation is interesting for the readers.
- Roopa Pai’s style of writing in ‘The Yoga Sutras for Children’ is easy to understand and the concepts are simplified to make it more doable.
- The pronunciation guide towards the end of the book is a thoughtful plus from the author’s end.
- The reckoner at the end makes the book one that a child or an adult would love to keep in the most accessible space of his or her bookshelf for a quick reference in daily life.
You might enjoy reading – How to Live Your Life by Ruskin Bond
Verdict
The Yoga Sutras for Children by Roopa Pai, is highly recommended by me. It will be great both as an addition to the personal collection as well as for educational institutions’ libraries. Though the book is meant to cater for children I feel it can be a great read for adults too. Roopa Pai is an awarded children’s author. I think it is her third successful attempt to bring an ancient concept to the forefront after her books about Gita and Upanishads. The book’s success lies in its ability to motivate readers towards cultivating mental well-being with regard to their cognitive and emotional realms.
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