The Forest of Beauty as seen by Shonu from his boat        copyright Joelle Jolivet for Little Gestalten

Look at the picture of Shonu sailing into the Sundarbans. How has Jolivet depicted the forest? 

“When he awoke the sky was green, not blue… a sky of leaves and branches witha moving, shifting land below”

“I’ve used… the direct colour technique,” Jolivet says, “like… screen printing or lithography. The different colours are drawn separately with India ink on tracing paper and then assembled on the computer… I found traditional forms of painting like pattachitra, which inspired me.”

Research pattachitra paintings and compare traditional Indian depictions of trees with those painted by artists from other traditions. For example, the French painter Le Douanier Rousseau who produced naïve scenes of the jungle without leaving France ("When I go into… glass houses and see strange plants of exotic lands, it seems… that I enter a dream” he said). Klimt’s series of Beech Grove paintings and Monet’s Bodmer Oak also feature trees, as do many anonymous Chinese paintings of cloud-capped forests. Which artwork do you prefer and why? What techniques were used to create them? 

Visit a park or woodland to draw trees from life using pencil crayons, graphite sticks and charcoal. Use your realistic sketches to help you design stylized pictures of trees. Try simple printing techniques featuring your stylized designs, then add washes of colour.

Use what you’ve learned to paint or print a forest scene inspired by Jolivet and pattachitra (or one of the other artists you’ve discovered). Can you write or tell a story set in the forest you’ve depicted?

What can we learn from this book about the wildlife and ecology of the Sundarbans? Look for information about local customs and beliefs that help protect the landscape.

“It’s their fault we are… starving!” says Dakkhin Rai. But is it fair of him to blame people for droughts and floods? Why do these problems happen? Who is working to protect the environment and what can we do to conserve areas like the Sundarbans?

“Bonbibi realized that Dakkhin Rai loved the forest more than anyone. If he was cruel, it was only because people were invading his forest to cut it down”

Research a charity or campaign to protect wildlife and the environment. Design posters to publicise these issues. Sow wild flowers or plant windowboxes to help bees in your neighbourhood.

Environmental damage to the Sundarbans     copyright Joelle Jolivet for Little Gestalten

"At night... (the bees) would... tell Shonu stories. Wondrous stories of things they had seen... songs he learned to echo with his leaves and boughs"

Write stories for the bees to tell Shonu. Stitch tiny handmade books, one for each story (see online for tutorials) to create a mini-library for the bees.
Make a story-hive to house your library by gluing shelves across a shoebox, then fitting a hive-shaped cardboard frame around your box.
Paint with an Indian-inspired colour-scheme, fill with your storybooks and leave near an open window for the bees to find!

People used to believe that they should visit their hives to tell the bees about important family events such as births, marriages and deaths. Can you find paintings or other artwork depicting this tradition?

The Bee Goddess who rules the wild bees in the Forest of Beauty  copyright Joelle Jolivet for Little Gestalten

“Shonu stepped into the kingdom of honeycombs: black and gold clouds shaped like mountains, castles, crowns… hanging from branches, rising from hillocks, growing into hollows”

Look at the spread in this book showing the honeycombs. Why are they depicted as palaces, do you think? Can you find other pictures of bees? What did you know about bees and honey before you read this book, and what have you discovered by sharing it?

Examine a honeycomb (they are sometimes included in a jar of honey) to look at the materials used, its construction and the patterns formed. If possible explore hives with a beekeeper to discover how honey is made.

Find out about wild bees online or via information books (there's a clip here featuring David Attenborough which is interesting despite the picture quality) and talk about what you've discovered.

The wild honeycombs remind Shonu of palaces     copyright Joelle Jolivet for Little Gestalten

Imagine you’re a wild bee living in one of the honeycombs in this book. Tell the story of how you made the honey and what happened when Shonu raided your home. What will you do now?

Karthika Nair describes honey as “liquid light” to be drunk in “great gulps of joy.” Hold a honey-tasting session (check for allergies!) and use poetic language to describe what you can see, smell, taste and touch. Cook honey cakes and biscuits and sell to raise funds for a bee-protection charity.

“Striding towards him was Dakkhin Rai… in his favourite disguise: a Royal Bengal Tiger… larger than fear and twice as angry”

When Shonu sees the tiger, he flees in “a jumble of arms and legs and panic.” Describe Shonu’s escape using a first-person narrative, making your readers feel every moment of your ordeal.  

Tigers have long been respected, feared and hunted. Learn about tiger conservation projects and create a display. 

Can you find other writing, artworks or performances featuring tigers?

At the festival of Pulikali, people dress up as tigers to celebrate harvest. If you were going to hold a festival to honour the tiger, what would you do? Plan and host a festival to honour a wild creature of your choice.

The Demon King watching over Shonu, who is making amends to the bees by spending all summer as a tree      copyright Joelle Jolivet for Little Gestalten

This book started life as DESH, a dance-drama by Akram Khan. Look through the book with this idea in mind and talk about each spread. How could you show people what's happening just using your bodies? Would it be easier or more difficult with props and scenery? What would you use and how would it work? Listen to everyone's ideas and ask children to extend and question them.

Take this further by focusing on Shonu's transformation into a tree and his interaction with Dakkhin Rai. 

Start by looking at the pictures showing Shonu as a flowering / wilting tree. What do you think he can he see, hear, smell and taste in each picture? How do you think he's feeling? How can you tell? Copy Shonu's postures, using your bodies to express what you've been discussing.

Shonu as a tree providing nectar for the bees     copyright Joelle Jolivet for Little Gestalten

Look at the picture of the tiger showering the Shonu-tree with water. How do you think Shonu is feeling now? Explore movements showing what happens and how Shonu responds.

Now look at the picture of Shonu's initial transformation from boy to tree and explore through body movement and facial expression. 

“(Shonu’s) feet began drilling into the soil, deeper and wider, seeking water, pushing pebbles out of the way, wrapping themselves around stones…”

How do these words and images add to your thinking? Can you build on your movements to reflect this? Explore ideas, show back and discuss.

“a roar reverberated across the land… torn from the earth’s belly: dark, raspy with anger and hate and blood”

Now talk about the Demon Tiger. How does Shonu feel about him? Find text to back up your ideas, then look at the pictures and explore tiger-movements of your own. Try some silent roaring to go with your prowling and menacing. Can you sit without moving and still look fierce? How will you shake yourself, like Dakkhin Rai, to give the Shonu-tree water? 

In pairs, create movement sequences showing Dakkhin Rai observing Shonu’s transformation, Shonu’s response to the weather and Dakkhin Rai’s life-saving manoeuvre. Show back and discuss. Write about the episode from Shonu’s perspective, using interesting and expressive language, then Dakkhin Rai’s. 

Make masks inspired by Jolivet’s illustrations and create performances featuring your words and movements.

Then write about what you did, the changes you made to your work and an evaluation of your final performance. 

For more information about DESH and the Akram Khan Company click here

For the DESH trailer click here

A 46 minute film documentary HOMELAND: THE MAKING OF DESH is also available online to rent or buy

Interrogate the text and artwork for information about Bonbibi and Dakkhin Rai. Who are they? What do they look like? How are they described? Who or what do they guard, and why?

Look at the picture showing the two Bonbibis and compare them. Why are there two of them? 

“(Shonu) saw… bare feet beneath a shimmering green sari. Lifting his head… he saw a dark lady with a silver trident in one hand. So he opened his left eye… and spotted… another warrioress, in a pink salwar-kameez and wondrously curved slippers, her hair covered in a… veil.”

“Bonbibi is worshipped by Hindus and Muslims in the Sundarbans,” says Karthika Nair, “and it was fascinating to see the plurality of belief in (Jolivet’s) representations… There are few “official” photos (of Bonbibi and Dakkhin Rai) - we got a clearer picture through photos of temples and shrines, street theatre (and) festivals.” 

Search for traditional images of Bonbibi and Dakkhin Rai online and compare with the pictures in this book.

Are there other places where different religions share holy places and beliefs? Where? What is shared, and by whom?

Think of a natural place that’s special to you. What would its guardian look like? How would they behave? What special powers might they have? What would they do and say to ensure the safety of their place? Inspired by images of Bonbibi and Dakkhin Rai, use clay, papier mache or other sculptural materials to create models of your newly-invented guardians. Write about them and how you made them.  

Bonbibi wearing her green sari      copyright Joelle Jolivet for Little Gestalten

The Honey Hunter is packed with information about a spectacular and distinctive area of the Indian subcontinent– the Sundarbans. What did you already know about Bangladesh and India, and what have you learned by reading this book? Revisit the map you annotated before sharing The Honey Hunter and use the book’s text and illustrations to add information.

How do Shonu and his family live? What do they eat, how do they travel, what are their occupations and beliefs? What does this book tell us about the natural history of the area? 

List the wildlife mentioned in the text. Find photographs and draw pictures to add to your map. What else can you discover about the region? Create your own illustrated non-fiction guidebook.

Use information provided in the glossary to make ghee and kheer. What else can you taste, look at, listen to, read, learn about, wear, play or take part in that comes from Bangladesh or India?

From the glossary     copyright Joelle Jolivet for Little Gestalten