In a world that often rushes past quiet dreams and small wonders, When the Stars Came to School: Tiny Tales for Big Dreamers by Shruti Prashant Bhardwaj arrives like a gentle breeze through a window left slightly open to the sky. This enchanting debut collection offers twenty-one delicate short stories, each brimming with wonder, innocence, and the silent resilience that lives in the hearts of children.
Every story in the book is a tiny universe — crafted with care, grace, and a sense of quiet magic that awakens both nostalgia and hope. These aren’t grand adventures or loud declarations. Instead, they are soft echoes of kindness, invisible bravery, dreams hidden in paper planes, and childhood moments that glimmer with stardust. Shruti’s writing invites the reader to pause, to breathe, and to feel — reminding us that sometimes the most profound truths live in the smallest, most unassuming stories.
The title itself — When the Stars Came to School — captures the essence of the collection: the idea that wonder and magic are not far-off things, but present in the everyday rhythms of life, especially through the eyes of a child. Whether it’s a fleeting smile, a quiet act of courage, or a longing scribbled in the corner of a notebook, Shruti transforms the mundane into the magical.
This book is not just for children, but also for grown-ups who still find themselves looking up at the stars and listening for the secrets they might whisper. It speaks gently to the child within all of us — the one who once believed in the impossible and still wants to.
Shruti Prashant Bhardwaj, the author, brings a depth of understanding to these tales, not only as a writer but also as a dedicated educator. Hailing from Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, Shruti has served as a Post Graduate Teacher in a reputed CBSE school and has spent more than a decade nurturing young minds through her work in the Basic Education Department of Uttar Pradesh. Her stories reflect this close bond with children and her sensitivity toward the emotional landscapes they navigate every day.
A believer in simplicity, silent observation, and emotional truth, Shruti’s storytelling style is rooted in empathy and poetic reflection. With When the Stars Came to School, she makes a remarkable literary debut — one that stands out not by shouting, but by speaking softly and meaningfully.
This book is more than just a collection of tales; it is a constellation of feelings — the kind that linger long after the last page is turned. It is a love letter to dreamers, to quiet hearts, and to those who still believe that the smallest moments can hold the widest skies.
When the Stars Came to School is a must-read for anyone who wants to remember what it felt like to be young, to wonder without reason, and to carry stardust in your pocket — just in case.