Books by Ranjit Lal

A relevant and stirring story for our times-about who we love and who we help. Umi, Anshu, Lavina, Shiv, Nasreen and Pankaj are typical teenagers living in Delhi. The six love to take off on their all-terrain cycles and explore the city. And one place they frequent is the Delhi Ridge-a forest area filled with all kinds of trees and thorny shrubs and home to half-forgotten monuments. Here, they come across the spooky Malcha Mahal with its strange and sad history. But the children are also getting sucked into another kind of adventure that is unfolding right next door. Their brilliant and pretty tutor, Khushboo Didi is in love with Salim, her childhood friend. Her family is dead opposed to this love story and the children are her only friends and allies. Will love triumph over hate? What dangerous game have the children started when they decide to help Khushboo and Salim? And how will the Ridge, with all its secrets, come to their rescue? Unflinching, exciting and action-packed, The Hidden Palace Adventure is a story for our times-about who we love and who we help, and about bravery that leads people to go places and do things they never thought possible.

An owlet, a cricketer, a wrestler, an all-important cricket match-and everything that can go wrong is going to go wrongRitesh, also known as Tubby, has joined the Jai-Hind International School in Delhi along with his twin sister, Smokey. Tubby is an astonishingly gifted cricketer and is soon in the school cricketing team. That is the easy part. The difficult part is being befriended by Jyotsna, better known as Patki, the soft-hearted, big-eyed, wrestling champion who sits next to him in class. Patki is determined to be his friend, even though all Tubby wants is to glower quietly and think about and practice cricket. But soon he finds himself accompanying Patki to a nearby ancient cemetery where they befriend the mynas, parakeets and an owlet called Owlet. Then, on the day of the most important cricket match of the year, to his great dismay, Tubby finds Owlet in grave danger.What will he choose now: sports, fame and glory-or compassion, kindness and a chance to be a real friend? Ranjit Lal's new novel about school, cricket and friendship is as funny as it is thought-provoking and will charm readers of all ages.

Avantika Singh, better known as General Gosling, was born aboard a Boeing 747 somewhere over the Arabian Sea. Gosling and her siblings - Duckling and the twins Dingaling and Dumpling - have been brought up at Shadow House by their grandfather, the crazy, zany Nana and his lovely partner Shabby Aunty.Nana, an ex-army surgeon, is completely whacko and life at Shadow House is exasperating, funny and unforgettable, what with Nana's fixation for his ten Classic and Vintage cars, Duckling's collections of virtually everything 'collectible' and the twins' notorious business swindles. But then when it becomes clear that Nana is slowly falling prey to dementia and Alzheimer's, his daughter makes diabolical plans for him-and for the children's future. Plans that Gosling and the others are determined to thwart, without foreseeing how terribly things could go wrong for everyone. Will dear nutcase Nana survive all this and return to his beloved Shadow House and Shabby Aunty?At once funny and heart-breaking, Our Nana Was a Nutcase is a delightfully touching story about growing up, growing old and loving your grandparent no matter how nutty he may seem.A Children's Bookshelf Selection: Each month our editor's pick the best books for children and young adults by age to be a part of the children's bookshelf. These are editorial recommendations made by our team of experts. Our monthly reading list includes a mix of bestsellers and top new releases and evergreen books that will help enhance a child's reading life.

The adventures of two runaway baby sparrows by award-winning author Ranjit Lal.Chiddy and Gouri, two baby sparrows, are bullied mercilessly by their elder siblings. They are so traumatized that they absolutely refuse to learn how to fly. Instead, they run away, kindly assisted by Breaking Wind-a jovial breeze. But they quickly discover that the world is an unkind place; they are trapped, dyed red, caged and sold off.A kind girl frees them, but the sparrows-still red and flightless-end up on the 'hit list' of the local cat mafia. From there, how do the timid little birds become the feared ninja sparrows? Will they be able to defeat the evil Siamese cats Ping-Li and Pong-La? Will they ever be able to return to their families? And will they finally realize that being a bird means being able to fly free?In this delightful book, Ranjit Lal reveals the incredible drama that flourishes among bird and animal lives in the gardens and parks all around us. Clever, funny and full of non-stop adventure, The Little Ninja Sparrows is about finding your true place in the world-whether human or sparrow.