The Small Tigers of Shergarh

by Ranjit Lal

Orphaned in a car accident, fourteen-year-old Shikha and five-year-old Sunny reach Shergarh House, on the edge of the Shergarh Tiger Reserve, to live with their uncle Binoy, an eccentric painter. In the company of Aslambhai (a retired forest guard) and his mischievous grandson Ali, the children enter a new world; that of the sights and sounds of the jungle. Encouraged by Field Director Mr Rana's daughter, Dipti, and watched over by her family, the children begin to enjoy their forays into the reserve and get inexorably drawn into the lives of the reserve's magnificent tigers; macho 'doofus'shahenshah, ferocious Sheba and even terrifying Shaitan. But then, Veena aunty, a.k.a. 'Snail Snot', turns up, a 'social worker'who is set to inveigle herself into Binoy chacha's life and who wants to discredit the reserve in whatever way she can as part of her 'Good Work'. Accompanied by her unpleasant cousin, the slimeball Randhir, and his equally dubious friends, she is determined to send the children to separate boarding schools by whatever means possible. As the two hatch their diabolical plans, the children's lives seem ready to fall apart, again. But will the doughty Shikha allow that to happen? Will Sunny, struck dumb by the shock of the car crash, stop clinging to his sister and speak again? Will the two children, who run away into the reserve pursued by Veena, Randhir and his cronies, survive the perils of the forest? Can 'the small tigers of Shergarh'turn the tables on the villains and live up to their name?

344 pages, Paperback

Published July 1, 2006

Reviews

[Gina Cheyne]

Such fun and such a sweet story. I loved it and I’m now passing it to my granddaughter who I’m sure will love it too.
Although it is really a children’s book it is full of clever, ironic humour which I loved. Super.

[Shrirang Ambekar]

Fantastic book.suspenseful

[Anshul]

A rather whimsical tale set in a fictional Tiger Reserve of Shergarh, a world I always have dreamt of as child and overall a fantastic quick read.