Today’s post comes to you from Rasil Kaur Ahuja

When the Sun Sets

“You read a lot of baby books,” a well-wisher commented recently. “This one,” she added, pointing to a book that was shortlisted for the 2025 Neev Book Award, “doesn’t even have words!”

How to explain the power of a story spoken in silence? A wordless book is the original choose-your-own adventure, luring the reader into active engagement. The story shape-shifts with every read, never the same twice. Two readers looking at the same image see something entirely different. This is the experience Ogin Nayam expertly brings us with the stunning When the Sun Sets (2024), published by Pratham Books.

In the oral storytelling tradition of Arunachal Pradesh, India’s Land of the Dawn-Lit Mountains, where the first rays of the morning sun filter through our borders, donyi is sun and Ane Donyi is Mother Sun. Nayam ushers us into the inner world of Ane Donyi, and what a delightful world it is. Ane Donyi’s slow descent of a mountain after a long day of work piques the reader’s curiosity. Where will she go? What will she do? Could this celestial being responsible for life on Earth have one of her own?

We follow Ane Donyi to her home to find a cosy space with paintings of yellow flowers. We watch her knit a scarf, cross-stitch, and read a book. When cloud babies gather around, they frolic together among magical beings, eventually reaching the Rainbow, where they all feast in harmony. Ane Donyi finally calls it a night and, as darkness enfolds, the reader wonders – does the sun truly sleep?

Nayam’s watercolour illustrations are a work of art, begging to be framed. The deeper you delve into an image, the more magic it reveals. The colour red is prominently used throughout the book, symbolising the spiritual realm of Ane Donyi’s world.

The book is a provocation to better acquaint ourselves with lesser-known indigenous cultures and their lore, and is a reminder that sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words.

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When the Sun Sets can be read free online on the Storyweaver platform and is available for purchase directly from the Pratham website. Note: other books by Ogin Nayam can also be found on Storyweaver.

As his author bio says, he believes his day job is to daydream. He loves working in the company of the moon, and sleeps when the sun is out.

Watch this Instagram reel posted by Pratham to find out what Ogin Nayam wants children to experience as they read his book.

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Rasil Kaur Ahuja has been a passionate reader since the day she discovered a library. She worked in technology for 10 years before making the leap into a fourth-grade classroom. She is the author of two middle-grade fiction novels, Watcha Gonna Do, Rosie Singh? and Unfair. Rasil is also a co-founder of the Neev Literature Festival in Bangalore and a juror for the Neev Book Award. She has a B.A. in Government & Politics, a M.S. in Information Systems, and a M.Ed. in Elementary Education. You can find her on Instagram as Rasil_Reads.