Shiva's Fire

On a day when fish leap among the stars and birds soar beneath the waters, a remarkable girl is born in a village in the South of India. As Parvati grows she becomes known for the peculiar events that seem to spring from beneath her dancing feet, and even as a toddler she is thought to have supernatural powers. One day the Guru Pazhayanur Muthu Kumara Pillai, the great master of Indian classical dance, comes to see for himself, and recognizes in Parvati a rare talent. He invites her to study with him at his gurukulam in the city of Madras, where she commits herself to a rigorous and solitary program of study, dance and devotion. Then she meets a gentle-eyed boy who with his own extraordinary powers turns her life upside down, and she learns that destiny can be an elusive thing.


Awards and Citations:

- New York Public Library 2001 Books for the Teen Age List
- Parents' Choice Gold Award, 2000
- Parent's Guide Award, 2000
- Publisher's Weekly Best Books of 2000
- Children's Book of the Year, Bank Street College, 2000
- YALSA Popular Paperbacks

Reviews:

"As she did in SHABANU (Knopf, 1989), Staples reveals the richness of another culture through the narrative details. Using traditional material; aspects of the Hindu god Shiva Nataraja, the lord of the dance; and particulars of modern Indian daily life and religious practice, Staples has spun a tale as smooth and lush as the silk of a sari. It should delight her readers."        
-- Kathleen Isaacs
    Starred review in School Library Journal

"Staples, who wrote about the life of a Pakistani girl in SHABANU (1989) and HAVELI (1993), offers a story set in India and brushed with mysticism. The injection of a romance in the final quarter of the book might not have worked in less capable hands, but Staples makes this element seem like a natural evolution. One of the book's strengths is its vivid depiction of Indian life. Using language the way artists use paint, Staples writes with brilliant detail and mixes magic realism with hardscrabble poverty as she tells Parvati's story. A unique offering."
-- Ilene Cooper
    Starred review in BOOKLIST

"If not for references to modern technology, this tale set in India might defy chronology; the folkloric narrative, primal settings and universal themes confer a timeless quality. The Hindu concept of dharma is as intricately woven into this saga as decorative threads are woven into Parvati's elaborate dance costumes. Staples' deceptively plain prose conjures a variety of moods, textures and images. Poetically and suspensefully expressing the sorrows and joys of the spiritual life as well as the life of the artist, this is a spellbinder." Ages 12-up.
--Starred review in PUBLISHERS WEEKLY