BOOKS WITH A CAUSE
President of Hands2Inspire, Dr. Simarjeet K. Sandhu, is the author of the Adventures of Simran & Sehaj. A portion of the proceeds from each book go to Hands2Inspire in hopes of Giving Back, Sharing Knowledge and Spreading Awareness.
KISAAN
Social Justice
In this story, Simran and Sehaj tell a story about a very important word, Kisaan, or farmer. Farmers are very important in India
because they help feed billions of people. Simran and Sehaj talk about farmers from Haryana and Punjab. They also talk about their great-grandfather who dreamed of being a Kisaan and fulfilled his dream by owning a farm in Haryana. Join Simran and Sehaj to learn about Kisaans and their great-grandfather.
WE ARE SIKHS
Diversity
In this story, Dr. Simi raises awareness for Sikhs. In this story, Simran and Sehaj share important facts about their religion, Sikhism. Take a journey with them and learn about their religion. There are also Recall and Reflect questions and a Glossary to help you understand new concepts introduced in the story. “We are Sikhs” will help you raise awareness for Sikhs in your schools and community.
BLIZZARD OF THE CENTURY
Values - Patience
Simran and Sehaj are on another adventure. This time they have to learn to be patient during a blizzard. They want to go outside and play in the snow with their cousin Jai, but they couldn't because there was a lot of snow and it was too cold. Join Simran and Sehaj and learn about the importance of being patient.
The end of the story provides reading comprehension questions, a glossary and a short description about Simran, Sehaj and Jai.
WHAT IS MOOL MANTRA?
Spiritual
Mool Mantra is a prayer that was created by Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the first Sikh guru. In this book, join Simran and Sehaj on their journey to learn how to recite and understand Mool Mantra.
WHAT IS MEDITATION? WE SAY WAHEGURU.
Spiritual
Join Simran and Sehaj on their journey through meditation. In this first book, Simran and Sehaj introduce Gurmat meditation. Learn the basics on how to meditate using the Gurbani word "Waheguru".
MEET THE ILLUSTRATOR
Anastasiia Sokolova
In an interview with Frederick News Post, Sokolova wrote:
How did you meet Dr. Sandhu? When did you start working with her?
1. I started working with Dr. Sandhu at the end of February 2021. I saw an ad post on the upwork platform that she was looking for an illustrator for her first book.
We started with the first book called - “What is Meditation? We say Waheguru”. Then shortly we started working on the next book - “What is Mool Mantra”, and ultimately we ended up creating “Kisaan”.
2. Tell me about your illustrating career -- how long have you been illustrating children's books?
I have been doing illustration for over 8 years. When I was 19 years old, I opened my art studio in Kiev, Ukraine. I arranged exhibitions for artists and invited artists to conduct their painting master classes. A little later, I created a store with children's books called Holz books, which is a YouTube channel for children. I have created both, Holz Publishing, and a Bookbystory.com illustration service.
3. Where did you get inspiration for deciding how to draw the book's main characters?
For the first book, I had sketches from Dr. Sandhu's niece - Mia Kaur Sandhu. Mia showed how the characters should look, what they should be wearing. She also gave the main ideas for the rest of book. Dr. Sandhu gave a clear description of the characters, right down to the names.
My job was to bring style, shape and color to the pages.
4. Had you known about the protests in India before starting to work with Dr. Sandhu? Did you learn anything new while illustrating her book?
I didn't know anything about the protests in India, it was completely new to me. Of course, after I found out about this, I began to become more interested not only in protests, but also in the culture of India in general.
5. What else would you like to add about either "Kisaan" or your experience working with Dr. Sandhu?
I am certainly very proud to meet Dr. Sandhu and illustrated 3 of her books. I believe that every book by Dr. Sandhu will be an excellent guide to the world of India and its multifaceted culture. To be honest, what surprised me most about Kisaan was the farmer, the grandfather of Dr. Sandhu - Maluk Sandhu. The book says that he lived to be 104 years old, which is amazing. Moreover, the photograph shows that he looked good at a very old age. This suggests that Maluk Sandhu was not only an excellent farmer, but also took care of his health. I believe that it is very important to instill in children from early childhood a culture of caring for themselves and their health, because it is people like Maluk Sandhu who serve as an example for us. Also, I would like to add that we are working on the 4th book and it will be no less interesting!