Rock By Rock
The TRUE story about NEK CHAND’S FANTASTICAL ROCK GARDEN
By- Jennifer Bradbury
Reading age- 4 - 8 years
Publisher- Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books
Publication date-February 23, 2021
____________________________________________________________________________
Nek Chand is just a road builder in the large straight city of Chandigarh, but one man can make all the difference.
Nek was different from the other people- what does he want, looking through that pile of rubbish? Why was he picking up broken bangles? And where was he going with all those rocks? Nek was going to a secret place that he found when he was feeling homesick. When India became a country, they decided to split India in two, and named the northern part Pakistan. Pakistan was meant for Muslims, But Nek’s family, who lived in Pakistan, were Hindu. Forced out by anger and violence, Nek’s family fled to India. Bujt Nek never stopped missing his homeland, and one day, when the missing was too much, he discovered a small patch of forest. Suddenly, all that was missing took action. Nek built beautiful things out of nothing- dancing ladies, their saris adorned with broken bangles. Animals and laughing soldiers and a fairy village, all made from the refuse people didn’t want. But soon, all this beauty nearly came to a halt when Nek got discovered by the city officials. But, instead of punishing Nek, they gave him workers! Nek got out of one problem, but when a jealous city official decides to build a road through the Rock Garden, what can Nek do?