Description

In this clever, convivial picture book, an Indian boy untangles a mathematical conundrum to win a place at the Rajah’s court.

The story is set in ancient India and follows a boy named Bhagat who wants to bring his family out of poverty by winning a place in the rajah’s court as a singer.

As it turns out, when it’s time for Bhagat to find a place to stay in the city, he is faced with a mathematical puzzle. He must pay the innkeeper one ring per night in advance, and it costs one coin to break one link in his chain of seven. But Bhagat only has a single coin, and he doesn’t know how many nights he will need to stay. How can Bhagat find a way to divide the chain of seven rings in order to pay one ring per night and avoid overpaying?

In the end, Bhagat succeeds in an unexpected way—and it is his thinking as well as his singing that saves the day.

His inventive solution points the way to an unexpected triumph, and offers readers a friendly lesson in binary numbers–the root of all computing.

Pictures from Mrs. Isbell’s Library-Go-Round (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95DfTPo3Ip4) and https://www.soaring20spb.com/blog/2020/10/26/seven-golden-rings-book-birthday

Rajani as a kid who was obsessed with books.
From the author: I also loved writing, but I knew I didn’t want to pursue it as a career. I was in a creative writing class in high school—a class I loved—when I told my teacher, “I really enjoy writing, but I know I want to become a doctor.”

That teacher, Mr. Herzfeld, told me, “Who says you have to choose?” And he introduced me to the works of several authors also happened to be doctors, including Richard Seltzer, William Carlos Williams, and Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

And although I already knew what I was going to do with my professional life, that planted a seed in my mind.

I could have closed the door on writing all those years ago. I could have told myself it was enough to have a career I loved. But I’m so grateful I didn’t talk myself out of the possibility of having two careers I love, two careers that challenge me and nourish me and bring me joy in unexpected ways. And like Bhagat, I’m grateful that early on, I had someone in my life who believed in me and told me I didn’t have to choose, that maybe I could do both.

So today, on the book birthday of my debut picture book, I’m also celebrating the idea of not letting anyone limit what you can be . . . including yourself.