Q & A with author Subhash Kommuru

Can we begin by having you take us at the beginning?  Where did you come up with the idea to write your book?

Thank for your giving me the opportunity to share my opinion on your distinctive blog and exceptional readers and besides all the other great authors visiting here. I migrated to US from India and brought with me memories of land rich in culture and beliefs. For as long as me and my wife were by ourselves, we never took a moment to think about our cultural heritage and our values. But once we had Arya, our son, our perspective changed. He was growing up fast and seeing American culture all around him. That’s when we realized that there is a treasure called “India” which he is not exposed to and will never get to know unless we do something about this. Sure we can take him to local gatherings, temples, celebrate one of two festivals but that simply is not enough. Kids learn a lot from many different channels, One of those most effective channel is books. For Arya any time is story time, no matter how sad or how mad he is a book can always come to rescue. 

Tell us a little about your next book or writing project. 

My stories are always related to Indian culture in some shape or form with an end objective or take away for kids. One thing I am not quite getting it right is the timing of my story. My most recent book “Mother’s Love Can Conquer Any Fear!” should have released closer to mother’s day. The core message celebrates a mother’s love that knows no boundaries. This story is set in a happy chicken farm with Shastriji, an old sage chicken, being at the center stage. All the other chickens looked up to him for advice and help. He was helpless when it came to Kaalia, the vile crow, and the problems he brought with him. Shastriji tried everything his wisdom and knowledge taught him but couldn’t rid happy farm from evil. That’s when a mother’s love achieves a feat to defeat tyranny. Despite a vile crow and failing effort of chickens the story is very funny to its core. 

Is there a theme or message in your work that you would like readers to connect to? 

Diversity is the core of all my books. Coming from a diverse land myself, I value diversity a lot. I feel like diversity is more than culture; its characteristics, its behavior and how humans interact. It’s an interesting concept. Take ‘The Magic of Friendship’ for example, two very diverse character Babbar, the fierce and mean tiger and Hasmukh, the funny and entertaining donkey. What can such diverse character bring in a story? If you read the book you will understand they will not only bring entertainment but it will change their and also your lives forever.

Bio

Subhash and Sujata hail from India. They migrated to the United States along with their memories of childhood and youth. Now that they are parents, just like every immigrant they crave to introduce their child to the culture and values of their upbringing. Yet it is challenging to teach something while you are in the midst of adjusting to a different culture yourself.

Subhash and Sujata both work in different disciplines and have different styles and backgrounds, but it is the upbringing of their son that brings them on the same page. That exact place where they meet is captured and reflected in their stories, where Subhash can express in words, and Sujata can illustrate them beautifully. Where he puts it in black and white, she adds color to it. You get the idea!

These stories are their attempt to share a glimpse of their childhood days with their son. He is their inspiration to write short stories that have meaning to them and provide teaching in some shape or form. 

About the Book

BABBAR is a fierce and mean tiger who cannot tolerate anyone, but he is lonely and sad. HASMUKH is a funny donkey but gets scared of everyone. When the Magic of friendship touches them see how it transforms not only their characters but also transforms the whole environment around them. 
The Magic of friendship is a hilarious, action packed entertaining story. There are scary moments, celebration and comical moments. While the core focus of the story is about friendship it has elements of father son bonding and family values as well. 
Book gives plenty of opportunity for parents to entertain kids with their own version of animal noises. And bright and interactive illustrations is sure to leave a mark on eyes.

This is a story about change -- a transformation that comes with the magic of friendship. Personality may not change, but nature can surely change. This story will show the value of friendship and how that can change a person, particularly, one who is lonely and never really had the gift of laughter. 

Paperback: 42 pages
Publisher: Kommuru Books (August 25, 2014)