AGARWAL, Deepa 1947-

PERSONAL: Born December 23, 1947, in Almora, Uttranchal, India; daughter of Arthur (a doctor) and Nancy (a teacher; maiden name, Joshi) Rawat; married Dilip Agarwal (in business), March 29, 1972; children: Garima Agarwal Swarup, Sonali, Geetika Agarwal Sharma. Ethnicity: "Indian." Education: Allahabad University, M.A., 1969. Hobbies and other interests: Reading, classical music, traveling.

ADDRESSES: Agent—c/o Author Mail, Scholastic India (Pvt.) Ltd., 29 Udyog Vihar, Phase-1, Gurgaon, 122 016 Haryana, India. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: S.P.M. College, New Delhi, India, lecturer, 1969-72; writer.

MEMBER: Indian Society of Authors (life member), Association of Writers and Illustrators for Children (life member), Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, Lekhika Sangh (life member).

AWARDS, HONORS: Book prizes, Children's Book Trust, 1987, for A Capital Adventure, 1991, for The Toy Horse, and 1997, for The Walking Tree; National Award for Children's Literature, Government of India, 1993, for Ashok's New Friends; short story prize, Asian Age, 1995, for "Cradle Song."

WRITINGS:

for adults

Hyena and Other Short Stories (translated from the Hindi), Ocean Books (New Delhi, India), 1998.

The Crusade (novel; translated from the Hindi), Ocean Books (New Delhi, India), 2001.

If the Earth Should Move (short stories), Srishtis (New Delhi, India), 2002.

for children

A Capital Adventure (mystery novel), Children's Book Trust (New Delhi, India), 1990.

Three Days to Disaster (mystery novel), Ratnasagar (New Delhi, India), 1990.

Traveller's Ghost, HarperCollins (New Delhi, India), 1994.

Lippo Goes to the Park (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 1994.

Squiggly Goes to School (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 1994.

Everyday Tales, HarperCollins India (New Delhi, India), 1995.

Hunt for the Miracle Herb (mystery novel), Penguin India (New Delhi, India), 1995.

Ghosts Everywhere (short stories), A'N'B Publishers (New Delhi, India), 1996.

Adventures in the Hills (short stories), A'N'B Publishers (New Delhi, India), 1996.

(Reteller) Folk Tales from India, Macmillan India Limited (Chennai, India), 1997.

(Reteller) Myths and Legends from India (retold myths and legends), Macmillan India Limited (Chennai, India), 1997.

(Reteller) Animals and Birds in Myth and Legend, Macmillan India Limited (Chennai, India), 1997.

The Hilltop Mystery (novel), Vikas House (New Delhi, India), 1999.

Ashok's New Friends (picture book), Children's Book Trust (New Delhi, India), 1999.

The Walking Tree (picture book), National Book Trust (New Delhi, India), 1999.

Birju and the Flying Horse (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 1994.

Lippo Goes to a Party (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 2000.

Squiggly Goes for a Picnic (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 2000.

Cheeko and the School Bag (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 2000.

Flippi the Flying Pup (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 2000.

What's Right What's Wrong (short stories), Save the Children Fund (New Delhi, India), 2001.

Anita and the Game of Shadows (fantasy novel), Scholastic India (Haryana, India), 2002.

Bamba and Pinky (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 2002.

Flippi the Doggieangel (picture book), Frank Educational Aids (Noida, India), 2002.

Contributor of articles, short stories, poetry, translations, and reviews to periodicals.

WORK IN PROGRESS: A novel for adults; an adventure novel for children; research on the history of children's literature in India; research on trading communities on the Indo-Tibetan border; poetry collection for adults; short story collection for children.

SIDELIGHTS: Deepa Agarwal told CA: "My primary motivation for writing is communication and a desire to inculcate the values of equality in both children and adults. My writing process depends on the work in question. I research the topic before getting down to writing, and revise a lot. I draw my themes from my immediate environment as well as my past experiences. The position of women and children in my country as well as the world at large has been a moving force in my writing. My earlier writing was more journalistic; now I concentrate mostly on my fiction and poetry."