On Friday, September 20th, 2019, award-winning author Padma Venkatraman will be speaking with our freshmen students about her 2010 novel, Climbing the Stairs. The story, set during World War II and British-occupied India, follows Vidya, a fifteen-year-old girl from India who dreams of attending college during a time where her culture frowns upon this behavior from young women. Political events unfolding in her country also lead to a deep internal struggle as she wrestles with who she is and what defines her.

 

Assigned as our freshmen summer reading book and the focus of current student projects in the classrooms, Climbing the Stairs presents powerful themes of morality, loyalty, and coming of age. We are incredibly excited to hear Ms. Venkatraman speak about her work!

 

Padma Venkatraman is the winner of numerous awards and citations for her work. Her other young adult novels include A Time to Dance, Island’s End, and her newest release, The Bridge Home. She has lived in 5 countries and also worked as an oceanographer on research vessels. Ms. Venkatraman lives in Rhode Island with her family.