This fine collection of sports stories for both boys and girls (yes, certainly girls, too!) will entertain many pre-teens.

The authors show a good understanding of the young mind, and all the twists and turns the life of a youngster can take when involved in competitive sport. There is something here for all students – the shy ‘library’ type, the brave sort that refuses to give up playing in a tournament even when hurt, the girl obsessed with becoming a champion, a story about kite flying (that’s a great sport, too!) and others. There is even a little story set during the Quit India movement, and one dedicated to the humble but popular Gulli-Danda.

From girls who make friends as they try to make it to the basketball team, to a budding cricketer and a ‘kabaddi’ crazy gang, the protagonists are varied and (thankfully) unsentimentally portrayed. Strongly recommended for grown-ups too – like me – who wish to revive nostalgically their childhood memories of playing, fighting and making up during and after school.

Buy it for your kids and encourage them to get out and play!

Note to teachers: My boys and girls loved the book when I used some of these stories to teach them the elements of a short story, how you build up a plot to its climax, and how you create an exciting twist in the end. Here are home-grown stories set in very real and palpable Indian contexts for a change that our children can relate to!