An essential guide to myths, legends, science around India’s geography

New Delhi, Sep 8 : In the North, a majestic mountain range emerges from a demons tantrum.

In the South, the avatar of a god gives a forest its name.

In the East, a pirate king finds his plans foiled by a formidable force of nature.In the West, a sea keeps a city safely hidden in its deep waters.

Long ago, before science came up with explanations for the events that occurred in nature, people turned to stories to make sense of the wondrous workings of the natural world.And so, a life-giving stream became the gift of a goddess, a hot spring arose from the breath of a celestial snake and a heap of broken boulders served as a testament to a divine battle.

Zigzagging through myths, folklore, local history and geological theories, "Gods, Giants and the Geography of India" (Hachette), an extraordinary book, draws fascinating connections between ancient tales and the science behind the spectacular geography of India.Join Nalini Ramachandran on a most unusual, adventure-filled expedition up, down and across the countrys varied terrain! Nalini Ramachandran is always looking for interesting stories to tell - of glorious goddesses, daunting demons, stealthy shapeshifters, gorgeous geographies, wondrous wildlife and ordinary objects.

She began writing for children when working with Indias only all-comics childrens magazine, Tinkle.Today, her short stories have appeared in anthologies such as Gifts of Teaching, Scary Tales, and Thank God Its Caturday! She is the author of "Detective Sahasasimha: The Case of the Disappearing Books", "APJ Abdul Kalam: One Man, Many Missions" (which won Multistory Learning Pvt.Ltd.s Best of Indian Childrens Writing - Contemporary Awards 2019 in the Comics/Graphic Novels category), "Lore of the Land: Storytelling Traditions of India" and "Nava Durga: The Nine Forms of the Goddess".She also edits childrens books and holds workshops on creative writing and storytelling.