We use cookies to make your experience better. To comply with the new e-Privacy directive, we need to ask for your consent to set the cookies. Learn more.
Climbing the Stairs
We love literature, and we know you do too! If you're looking for individual novels or classroom libraries, click here.
Read Padma Venkatraman's posts on the Penguin Blog.
Fifteen-year-old Vidya dreams of going to college— an unusual aspiration for a girl living in British occupied India during World War II. Then tragedy strikes, and Vidya and her brother are forced to move into a traditional household with their extended family, where women are meant to be married, not educated. Breaking the rules, Vidya finds refuge in her grandfather’s library. But then her brother does something unthinkable, and Vidya’s life becomes a whirlwind of political and personal complications. The question is, will she be strong enough to survive?
Watch a Video
Fifteen-year-old Vidya dreams of going to college— an unusual aspiration for a girl living in British occupied India during World War II. Then tragedy strikes, and Vidya and her brother are forced to move into a traditional household with their extended family, where women are meant to be married, not educated. Breaking the rules, Vidya finds refuge in her grandfather’s library. But then her brother does something unthinkable, and Vidya’s life becomes a whirlwind of political and personal complications. The question is, will she be strong enough to survive?
Watch a Video
Product Features & Resources
More Information
| Product # | 21700-G |
|---|---|
| Author | Padma Venkatraman |
| Grade Level | 7-12 |
| Interest Level | 7-12 |
| Fiction/Nonfiction | Fiction |
| Guided Reading Level | Y |
| Lexile Level | 750 |
| Publisher | Penguin Putnam Books |
| Multicultural | Asian |