Barefoot Skateboarders

Author: Rina Singh and Sophie Casson

In this tiny village, the skatepark changed everything.

In this nonfiction picture book, the tiny village of Janwaar in Madhya Pradesh, India, gets a new skatepark, which inspires Ramkesh and all the local kids to learn how to skateboard, putting them on the map and uniting their community.

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Summary

In this tiny village, the skatepark changed everything.

Description

The remote village of Janwaar in Northern India has been the same for a long time, with the community strictly divided into castes. It's a quiet village... until the construction project begins.

Ramkesh can't tell what it will be--it's all ramps and hills. When it's done, he sees kids playing on it, on strange boards with wheels... Soon, he's invited to try, and he's hooked--practicing tricks and soaring on his skateboard. At first, it's all boys, but Ramkesh invites his sister, and other girls join too. Word gets out that the tiny village is a hotbed of skateboarding talent, and people flock from all over to see it, and to teach the kids new tricks. Ramkesh and his friends even get invited to travel, gaining the first-ever passports for their village. But most important, they come back home to tell of their journeys...and to lead the way for Janwaar into the future, with a newfound sense of joy and unity.

Available in French as Les planchistes aux pieds nus.

Praise for Rina Singh

★"A very wise book, speaking volumes...Share this at story hours, or hand it to the child struggling to read; this communicates essential truths without a word. Marvelous."--School Library Journal, starred review for Once, a Bird

★"This sweet, understated story is wordless--a perfect way to tell it, as it requires youngsters to relate to the illustrations in a unique, profoundly personal way...Refreshing, beautiful, moving, and meaningful."--Kirkus Reviews, starred review for Once, a Bird

★"With cinematic fluidity, Dion's marvellous watercolor, gouache, and digital illustrations evocatively convey Singh's thoughtful wordless narrative...This multilayered wordless picture book has much to say about nature, renewal, and resiliency."--Booklist, starred review for Once, a Bird

★ "[A] tender tribute to the Hindu holiday of Holi...A joyful hybrid of concept book, holiday title, and portrait of familial love."

-Publishers Weekly, starred review for Holi Colors

★ "Singh celebrates Holi, the Hindu festival of colors and love, and highlights six colors in this vibrant, playful board book...The sheer joy of the event comes through on nearly every page...Communicating the universal concept of color within the specific celebration of Holi, this gem deserves a place in every child's book bag."

- Kirkus Reviews, starred review for Holi Colors

Critic Reviews

"The potential of children to become changemakers even in the most stratified societies is the driving message of Barefoot Skateboarders, and Sophie Casson's playful illustrations bring Ramkesh's tentative first steps, and high-flying ollies, into full colour....Tells the true story of how sport can help bridge caste and gender divides."

-- "Montreal Review of Books (MRB)"

"Bright, cheerful illustrations highlight first the differences and then the commonalities between the two village groups, effectively capturing the joy of the soaring skaters."

-- "Booklist"

About the Author

Rina Singh is an award-winning children's author who is drawn to real-life stories about the environment and social justice. Her critically acclaimed and award-winning books include Grandmother School, winner of the 2021 Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize; Diwali: A Festival of Lights, nominated for the Red Cedar Award; and Once, a Bird. Rina has an MFA in creative writing from Concordia University and a teaching degree from McGill University. She lives in Toronto.

Sophie Casson has illustrated more than twenty-five books, including The Artist and Me by Shane Peacock, a finalist for the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, and Helen's Birds by Sara Cassidy, selected as part of IBBY Canada's Silent Book collection. Her highly acclaimed illustrations are inspired by etchings, silkscreen works and Japanese woodblock prints. Sophie's award-winning work has also appeared in the Globe and Mail, the New York Times, the Financial Times, the Los Angeles Times and Nature, as well as in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Sophie lives in Montreal, Quebec.