Not Myself Today
Local writer takes on tween turmoil with humour and a twist
Who hasn't ever wanted to be someone else?
In Not Myself Today Saanvi makes that wish in a moment of desperation, and from that?
A story is born.
Mahtab Narsimhan's latest book is a must-read for the 8-12 set, and is specially geared for reluctant readers to enjoy. Her publisher, Orca calls this book an 'ultra-readable page turner'.
Riya hates everything about school, and the only thing that makes it bearable is gathering her pals around and making fun of their less-than-cool classmates. With her dollar-store clothes, Saanvi makes the perfect target, but it turns out she's not so great at taking a joke. Things go very wrong during a class field trip to the museum, and both girls find themselves in a most unexpected adventure.
Narsimhan has been writing books for kids for more than 20 years, with many of her books finding their way onto award short-lists. Her debut novel The Third Eye won the prestigious Silver Birch Award, while both Ghost Queen and Careful What You Wish For were selected as Junior Library Guild Gold Standards. With a passion for creating diverse characters who find themselves in adventurous situations, she regularly presents to schools, teaching conferences, libraries and festivals both across Canada and internationally.
Not Myself Today, a middle-grade adventure with a Freaky Friday twist, is her twelfth book for this age group and her 25th published title. She's written picture books, chapter books, trilogies and has contributed to anthologies. All this while holding down a day-job in tech, which has allowed her to travel all over the world, picking up ideas for new stories along the way.
Back at home, Narsimhan has been a West Coast dweller for nine years. She makes the most of her time living along the Sea to Sky, hiking local trails with her husband.
Her favourite quote from a reader comes from West Vancouver librarian Shannon Ozirny talking about the Mumbai-set novel The Tiffin.
"Melding the fantastically factual with fiction, Narsimhan sheds light on a relatively unknown part of Mumbai life while simultaneously creating a compelling quest that reads like a classic folk tale. Forgive the groan-inducing wordplay, but a novel this original is one in six million."
You can find Not Myself Today in local bookshops everywhere, but if you have a young reader in your life, The Watershed has a deal for you. We have signed copies to give away to the first two readers to leave a comment below.
You can learn more about the unique, imaginative worlds in Mahtab Narsimhan's other books at her website, HERE.
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Would love a copy to share with my nephew, Sam, who lives in Seoul but spends his summers here in Howe Sound with us!