The Grand Story of Ikli Chokli
Author – Vinayan Bhaskaran
Illustrated by Rajiv Eipe
Tulika Publication
Age Recommendation 6+
The Grand Story of Ikli Chokli is a story about a stray puppy ‘Ikli’ that belongs to a pack of dogs that call each other Chokli in a place called Karim Nagar. One day, Ikli finds himself accidentally wandering into a rain puddle and surprisingly enjoys the dirty, itchy and scratchy feeling that he gets after he wets himself in a puddle. His mother’s warnings about this strange obsession of Ikli falls on deaf ears.
Ikli finds himself enjoying the puddles so much that he begins to brag about his little ‘adventures’ to other pups in the pack, enjoying the admiration in the eyes of the other pups.
A few days later, Ikli comes across a green scummy pond and goes crazy dipping himself in the green filth. Just when he is flaunting his strange shade of fur, it ends up giving him such a bad itch that he goes sore and is exhausted just scratching himself. A kind passerby notices his agony and takes him to an animal shelter.
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In the dog shelter, Ikli meets other dogs and learns an important lesson. What does he learn and how? Why is it important? The rest of the book tells the tale of the coming of age of Ikli.
The Grand Story of Ikli Chokli has a lovable dog as a central character, making it a very relatable story. Through the story, the author Vinayan Bhaskaran does a great job of bringing the concept of ‘Cause and Effect’ to young readers. The lovely illustrations by Rajiv Eipe bring life to this simple story and add humor and action to the book.
The Grand Story of Ikli Chokli is a read-aloud book and can be found in major bookstores and on Amazon.
