Harjot Singh

Harjot Singh grew up in India and lives in California with his wife and two children. He has been reading books and telling stories as long as he can remember. This book grew out of his storytelling to his children about Indian culture and history, especially the stories that move him and make his heart beat faster.

When not writing, he has fun juggling his roles as a husband, father and a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist.

“The joy of reading led me to writing.

When I was a child, I read whatever I could lay my hands on. Books, newspapers, magazines, comic books, it didn’t matter as long as there were words printed on paper. I still remember the thrill I felt when I read Robinson Crusoe, by Willem Dafoe. I was nine or ten at that time. I couldn’t believe that anyone could even think of a story like that.

Later when I was fifteen, I remember the explosion of curiosity inside my head when I read Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories about Sherlock Holmes. That was the first time in my life that I was up all night reading a book. I have had many sleepless nights reading books since then.

I realized early on that reading a book and imagining it in my head was so much more pleasurable and satisfying than watching someone else’s vision in a movie or TV. And that learning from a fun story is infinitely longer lasting and deeper than reading facts from a book that reads like a car manual.

I have been making up stories in my head since my childhood, but it was only when I started telling some of these to my children, they asked me to write them. And now all the children can read them.

It has been a joy working with Aninda Dutta, the illustrator. He drew the sketches, and did the cover art. He is a rarity – an artist who has deep understanding of Indian culture and history, and mastery of modern technology that kept us organized and moving.

Happy reading!”