Dr Alaka Rajan Skinner is a writer, storyteller, educator and executive coach. Alaka grew up in Iran and has lived in India, the US and Singapore. Alaka’s stories refl ect the themes that matter to her, including diversity and cross-cultural understanding, wellbeing and the natural world. She writes fiction and non-fiction, prose and poetry for adults and children. Her published works include articles for print and online publications, short stories, and children’s stories. Alaka’s microfi ction has appeared in Missed Connections, an anthology of microfi ction by Asian writers. Her children’s book about sustainability Are You Listening? has been featured on regional BBC radio, by Greenpeace Storytelling, and at the Singapore Eco Festival and the Asian Festival of Children’s Content.
<p>In the 1970s, an Indian family moves to Tehran, as the father gets a job teaching English in the university there. With two young children, the parents set up home in an ancient and beautiful city. Here, the children learn to read and write Farsi, they go to school, and they begin to understand the deep connections the land of Persia has with India.</p><p>Then, everything changes as the Islamic Revolution occurs, followed by the Iran-Iraq war, and the old way of life in Iran is gone forever. Caught in a time of turmoil, the little girl and her brother try to make sense of a world gone upside down. Will they ever be able to go back to the way things were? Or will they be uprooted from the place they have always called home?</p><p>Persian Nights brings together elements of iconic graphic novels like Persepolis, I Remember Beirut and Sisters, weaving a gentle and subtle story of family, upheaval, and cross-cultural experiences. This is the story of an outsider who feels like an insider; a story about all that we have in common.</p><div><br></div>
