There was a time when ideas about the multiverse, alternate timelines and an intergalactic orb that could create realities were relegated to a generation of readers and writers who owned the nickname of being ‘geeks’. But if the last decade of successful superhero movie franchises are anything to go by, science-fiction and related genres have received much mainstream adoration, thereby encouraging a crop of new writers. Combining this phenomenon with their alternative method of scientific learning, Mango Education is set to launch their first publication this weekend—a book of short sci-fi stories authored by children between the ages 12 to 14.
Titled The League of Little Stars, the book comprises of five short stories authored by students who have enrolled in Mango’s classes. “We had conducted a short story writing contest in 2017, following which, a panel of judges from Mango chose five winners,” explains Aasif Iqbal J, who was on the jury. Following consultations with science writer Dr Shubashree Desikan, the stories written by Akshita Sansugu Palaniswami (13), Manavalan Selva (13), Talish Rajamani Prithvish (14), Sathya Roopan M (12) and Shreyas Kannan (14) were fine-tuned before publication.
Ranging narratives of journeying through the galaxy, time travelling across space to stop the earth’s ultimate demise and man’s primal instinct to turn creator, the book comes complete with hand-drawn illustrations, created by the writers for their stories. “The illustrations were left untouched and depended on the imagination of the writers,” explains Aasif, who along with two other members from Mango, helped in the final compilation of the anthology.
Rs 180. The League of Little Stars will be unveiled at Mango Education on February 23. At 5.30 pm.