23-07-2025
A book for the naturalist in all of us
Did you know that geckos' long tongues do not just help them catch prey, but also allow them to clean their eyes? Or that ants and flies can taste with their feet, that female spiders send love notes to potential mates by releasing pheromone-soaked silken threads, that moths can expertly navigate their way through the world using stars, like sailors of yore, and that dragonflies have been around nearly as long as dinosaurs?
These and many other delightful nuggets of knowledge about the natural world can be found in a new activity-based nature book for children called Be a Neighbourhood Naturalist. Published by Juggernaut Books, it is co-authored by Labonie Roy, Vena Kapoor, and Suhel Quader, and designed by Pratyush Gupta, with illustrations by Tanrus Studio and Upasana Chadha.
What makes the book stand out is that the information is supplemented by engaging activities that will help children develop a fascination for the natural world, which include guided observations, from how to differentiate between webs of common spider species, to experiments that include growing mould on bread and making frog croaking sounds with a glass and a rubber band.
'This book is for the naturalist in you! Through questions about nature, it guides you on an exploration of your surroundings and the other living things that share them with you,' states the introductory chapter in the book.
Beginnings
Suhel says that the kernel of the idea for this book emerged around 2013, when the Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF), a Mysore-headquartered non-governmental wildlife conservation and research organisation of which he is a part, began developing a set of activities for children. 'The initial concepts for that were serialised in a couple of places,' he says. 'After we saw the response, we felt that we should put together a book of activities.'
In 2021, they started from scratch, generating new ideas and activities centred on the same concept. 'The versions NCF had published earlier were for one-time production, so when we decided to put all of it together as a book, it had to flow together,' explains Labonie.
The goal was to create a format in which children could go out, explore nature and find the answers for themselves. 'We didn't want it to be a book that you read while sitting on your couch, and passively absorb information. We wanted it to be something where you explore your surroundings and perform scientific activities.'
When you set up and prove something to yourself through experiments, information sticks, Labonie says. 'It also gives you a framework to think scientifically. These are the things that excite us about nature-based learning, which is why we wanted to make this an inquiry-based book.'
In keeping with that goal, every chapter of the book begins with questions like these: 'What exactly is an insect?', 'Why do leaves look so different from each other?', 'Is that the animal I think it is?' or 'Do all birds use twigs to build their nest?'
'But we aren't giving you the answer right away,' says Labonie. Instead, every question is followed by an exercise or activity that helps a child derive their conclusions before proceeding to receive further information about the animal, plant, phenomenon or behaviour being discussed. 'Rather than give them the information, we wanted to provide them with the tools to find out that information for themselves.'
Little things
For the three co-authors, noticing and asking questions about the small things they observed around their homes as young people ultimately led them to a career centred on nature, whether as artists, scientists, or nature educators.
Labonie, a mixed-media illustrator and nature-learning resource creator, for instance, was and continues to be obsessed with bugs. She was drawn into their world as a child by closely observing the trails of ants in her house. 'I would always be leaving food out to see how fast it could be eaten…atta, sugar, and whole biscuits.'
For Suhel, on the other hand, it was the bright and beautiful world of birds that helped catalyse his career as a scientist and educator with NCF. 'I used to think about birds a lot,' he says, remembering how he salvaged bird poop filled with seeds and planted it to figure out what the bird was eating.
In the case of Vena, who 'didn't have a childhood filled with curiosity,' her induction into the natural world came a little later, when she started her first job after an undergraduate degree in commerce.
'The supervisor at my first job in Chennai took me for my first spider spotting walk in our small office garden', recalls Vena, who founded and heads Nature Classrooms, a nature-learning initiative that seeks to link everyday learning and education to the natural world. 'On this short walk, she showed me my first spider and its amazingly intricate spider web, and then a few more, and I was completely fascinated and awed by the sheer diversity of life forms in this small space and how I had missed seeing them earlier.'
This was a crucial nature learning experience for Vena, one which made her wonder why such a simple act as a nature experience and walk was not part of the school education she received. 'To inspire everyone to feel a sense of wonder and fascination with the nature all around us is now my life mission.'
A sense of wonder
The book, which primarily focuses on things that children can observe in their balconies, homes, backyards or neighbourhood gardens, also drives home this.
'The idea is that people should not have to go far away from where they are to engage with nature,' points out Suhel, who believes that since nature is all around us, one can engage with it by simply paying attention. 'In that spirit, we ensured that all the activities in the book were those that could be done, either inside the house or within a small radius outside it,' he says.
'There is this huge misconception that nature in cities is fading,' adds Labonie, who feels that the way to look at Nature is that it's evolving, not fading.
The team hopes that the book will help instil a sense of wonder about the natural world, as well as deepen their understanding and involvement with it. 'Our lives are so full of other distractions, and this book is an attempt to cut through all this competition for our attention,' believes Suhel, while Vena feels that Be a Neighbourhood Naturalist could be a handy, fun and practical tool and educational resource.
'We can also use it as part of our educator and teacher training workshops,' she says. She also loves the idea of the book becoming part of every school library. 'We hope that through this book, we get people excited and curious about nature, connect deeply with it and ask wonderment questions.'
