Mitali Perkins's Blog, page 4

STEEPED IN STORIES Gathering for EMILY OF DEEP VALLEY: You're Invited!

The third gathering in our series of seven will focus on EMILY OF DEEP VALLEY by Maud Hart Lovelace, and we will discuss the novel as well as learn more about the vice of despair and the virtue of hope. Please sign up here to receive the zoom link. These moderated meetings aren't recorded as I seek to create a safe, open space for sharing.

Thus far we've discussed ANNE OF GREEN GABLES (rigidity and love) and HEIDI (alienation and faith). During the latter gathering, my Aha! moment came as we explored Heidi's loving restoration of her Grandfather into community. One of our friends pointed out that an invitation to serve Peter's Grandmother by repairing her cottage was a crucial step in calling out his true self and reminding him of his connection to others. 

Please come with an open mind and an open heart to be changed by encountering classic stories, flaws and all. Auntie Maud's story is the perfect holiday season read as we seek to grow in hope. Bring a hot beverage and light a candle and join us.

RICKSHAW GIRL North American Premiere at Mill Valley Film Festival

Bay Area friends, you’re invited to join director Amitabh Reza Chowdhury, producer Eric J. Adams, and me at  Mill Valley Film Festival’s North American premiere of Rickshaw Girl (suitable for ages 11+) on Saturday, 10/9 at 3:30 at CineArts Sequoia. Order tickets here starting 9/13. In English and Bengali with English subtitles.

“In this Bangladeshi drama, feisty young painter Naima (a riveting Novera Rahman) sets out on a quest to save her ailing father. Her artistic gift has blossomed with his encouragement but hasn’t yet proven financially rewarding. Naima’s mother dashes such childish dreams, which sends the frustrated teen off to the big city, determined to earn money for the family’s survival. And she does, by disguising herself as a boy to get a job as a rickshaw driver. Still, Naima’s creative drive has her sneaking every opportunity to paint, and as her vivid artwork comes to life in beautifully animated form, there is hope that her emergence as an artist will be her true salvation. Based on the acclaimed and beloved young adult novel by Mitali Perkins, Rickshaw Girl is a magical ride.” ~ Carol Harada

STEEPED IN STORIES Book Launch Day!

“Read, wide and deep, with love, Mitali Perkins.”
That’s how I’m inscribing copies of STEEPED IN STORIES: TIMELESS CHILDREN'S NOVELS TO REFRESH OUR TIRED SOULS , which releases today.  My hope is that this book will be a part of fulfilling  Broadleaf Books ' beautiful mission to "expand the mind, nourish the soul, and cultivate the common good." If you want a signed and/or personalized copy, feel free to order it from  Rakestraw Books , a local indie.

STEEPED IN STORIES Finished Copies are Here!

The finished copies of my forthcoming book, STEEPED IN STORIES: TIMELESS CHILDREN'S NOVELS TO REFRESH OUR TIRED SOULS , arrived today from Broadleaf Books , with a special surprise when I took off the dust jacket! (You may pre-order here , so it arrives on pub date on August 31.) What do you think?

You're Invited! STEEPED IN STORIES Book Launch Parties

Steeped in Stories: Timeless Children's Novels to Refresh our Tired Souls (Broadleaf Books) is my way of making peace with seven "Aunties" and "Uncles" who formed me with their beautiful stories (A Little Princess, Anne of Green Gables, The Silver Chair, Little Women, Emily of Deep Valley, Heidi, and The Hobbit), and yet (like all of us) were trapped in their own eras. You're invited to celebrate the launch of this nonfiction book for adults virtually on August 31, 2021 at 5:30 p.m. EST  OR on November 1, 2021 at Newtonville Books in Newton, MA at 7 p.m.  Hope to see you! RSVP using the links above.

You're Invited! STEEPED IN STORIES East and West Coast Book Launch Parties

Steeped in Stories: Timeless Children's Novels to Refresh our Tired Souls (Broadleaf Books) is my way of making peace with seven "Aunties" and "Uncles" who formed me with their beautiful stories (A Little Princess, Anne of Green Gables, The Silver Chair, Little Women, Emily of Deep Valley, Heidi, and The Hobbit), and yet (like all of us) were trapped in their own eras. 
You're invited to celebrate the launch of this nonfiction book for adults on August 31, 2021 at Rakestraw Books in Danville, CA at 7 p.m. OR on September 12, 2021 at Newtonville Books in Newton, MA at 3 p.m. Bring a friend or two and join us if you're near the Bay Area or the Boston area. We'll reminisce about our favorites, I'll read briefly from my book, and we'll discuss the issue of how to deal with flawed books, whether written in the past or in the present. A signing will follow, so if you can't make it to the events, order from either indie and they will send a signed copy to you. Hope to see you! RSVP using the links above.

BARE TREE AND LITTLE WIND: Cover Reveal!

My friends at The Englewood Review of Books were kind enough to host a cover reveal of my next book, illustrated by the illuminating  Khoa Le . Bare Tree and Little Wind (Waterbrook & Multnomah | January 11, 2022) is set in Jerusalem during a turbulent week that came to be known as Holy. See the beautiful cover here . Below, I introduce the collaboration with Khoa and how much joy seeing the cover gave me.
 

The Rickshaw Girl Movie Official Trailer is here!

Thrilled to share the official trailer for Rickshaw Girl , based on my novel of the same name. The film, which releases fall of 2021, is directed by Amitabh Reza Chowdhury, produced by Eric J. Adams of Sleeperwave Films, and stars Novera Rahman as Naima. Enjoy!

The film will compete at the Durban International Film Festival, one of the largest and oldest festivals in the southern hemisphere. Of the 3000 films submitted, only 100 features were accepted, and of those, only eight are in competition for “Best Feature Film.” Rickshaw Girl is one of them! It has also been accepted to the International Film Festival of South Asia in Toronto, the largest South Asian Film Festival in North America, and we are waiting for news from other festivals as well. Depending on how well it does in those venues, we'll know about theatrical releases in the fall. Can you tell I'm excited? I hope you are, too! Find out more at rickshawgirlmovie.com and search for the hashtag #rickshawgirlmovie on social media.

Why Read Books From The Past?

The Horn Book Magazine recently excerpted a chapter from my forthcoming nonfiction book for adults, Steeped in Stories: Timeless Children's Novels to Refresh our Tired Souls, coming 8/31/21 from Broadleaf Books. In it, I ask the question, "Why read flawed books from the past?" Here's a peek at my answer:

Cultural and historical contexts matter. The problem is that when you’re steeped in them, they shape you — for better and worse — and it’s hard to see how. So what is “goodness,” and who gets to determine its shape and scope? No single culture or era can fully hold the answer to that question; cultures and eras, like individuals, are marred and beautiful at the same time. To widen the narrow vision of our own perspectives, I encourage readers to cross borders of race and culture and learn from a diversity of contemporary storytellers. But to widen the narrow, limited vision of our own era, we may — dare I say, must — also cross borders into the past to seek goodness in stories there as well.

Read the rest here.

Welcome to the World, Shanti!

In Home is in Between , which releases today, my main character’s name means “peace." I hope readers will love Shanti as much as I do. Find out more about launch parties and how to order the books here .
The day your author copies arrive never gets old. 

Here's a photo of me when I, like Shanti, first arrived as a newcomer from a foreign land to a foreign land.