How I taught my grandmother to read - Sudha Murthy

Inspired by the writer more than the book.She attracts readers through her simplistic language, speaking directly through her books.I love her books.She talks about variety of subjects.Lot of moral lessons that we and the generations to come need to learn.Schools and colleges can only impart knowledge about the respective subjects.This book is a collection of short stories and real experiences by Sudha Murthy, as a school-goer, a college student, a employee, a lecturer ,a wife ,a mom,a philanthropist ,etc.She talks about honesty, simplicity, ingratitude and so on.

We as parents need to inculcate good behavior by practicing them ourselves.'How I taught my grandmother to read ' is a wonderful example of this.The joy of education lies in educating the uneducated(granny) without any pride.I am sure many of us laugh when our granny's want us to read out something.(I am proud that both my parental & maternal grandparents can read English at the age of 85.)

All of us are well aware of the letter she wrote to J.R.D Tata regarding gender bias. Every-time I read that, its like I am reading it for the first time.'

'A Wedding In Russia' narrates the incident of a Russian wedding, where the newlywed visit the Peace Park. It is customary for the newlyweds to visit any of the war monuments close-by with a sense of gratitude towards their freedom fighters and martyrs.How many of us in India know our freedom fighters except for the holidays we get.Sometimes we are not even aware of the reason for the holiday.How Shameful !! After all  we are leading a peaceful life today because of their struggle for independence.

'Amma,What is your duty?' is a discussion between the author and her daughter.The author's daughter puts forth a sensitive question which provokes the latter's responsibility towards the society.Thereby the author transforms herself and starts giving back to the society.Its true that, the more we give, the more we get.

Raising good and responsible citizens are in the hands of parents and teachers.Foundation is laid at home. I would like to thank my parents and my teachers for this.The stories in this book seem very simple but they are real nuggets of wisdom.
Few other books by the same author

• Wise and Otherwise
• Mahashwetha
• Dollar Bahu