This is the official site for my novel, Climbing the Stairs. Here, you will have the opportunity to explore the different threads that were woven into the fabric of my story. You will also find more information about me, links to book reviews, and other resources that relate to the themes in my novel.
Climbing the Stairs is a coming-of-age novel set in India in the 1940’s. It is the story of a young girl’s fight for freedom, mirrored by her nation’s struggle for independence. It is also a story that touches on several other themes through the political and personal complications that confront the main characters when an unexpected tragedy strikes. Although it is a work of historical fiction set in Asia, many of the conflicts that drive the plot forward have relevance for us here in the United States. The characters struggle with issues that confront us today: Should a nation ever go to war? If so, when and why? What is violence and what is nonviolence? Does nonviolent protest work? The story of Vidya and her family does not seek to answer these questions, but to raise them through the different characters’ beliefs and actions, and to show different points of view.
I hope that Climbing the Stairs is a book that teaches you about a period of time in India’s history and aspects of Indian culture. But, beyond this, I hope that it inspires you to explore the various other threads in the story, represented on the left-side menu bar through each of the main characters.
If you have any comments or questions, please email me or sign my guest book.
Thank you for your interest in my work,
Padma Venkatraman |
