[Tugindia] Goa's first e-book... on wildlife

[Frederick Noronha (FN)]

[Use of Free Software for a different purpose...FN]

THIS E-BOOK is available in a PDF format. You can read it with any PDF 
viewing software (such as Adobe Acrobat, or a number of others, easily 
downloadable via the Net).

"Free From School"

>From the blurb: 

It's not every day that a 16 year old writes a book. In fact, girls and
boys of that age are supposed to spend their time studying what other people
write. It is presumed that at that age they do not themselves have anything
significant or interesting to say. And the education system guarantees just
that. The best rewards go to those who can parrot set answers to set
questions in examination halls. Those who try to use their imagination or
reply differently are often punished with low grades.

Rahul Alvares did not set out to write a book. Under the encouragement of
his parents, he consciously set out to try his hand at learning things
outside the school framework and you might say as a result, Free From School
actually came looking for him! After his SSC, unlike his other classmates,
he opted out of schooling to follow his instincts: fond of reptiles, he
chased them up at the Pune Snake Park and at the Crocodile Bank at
Mamallapuram. In the process, he also picked up trails of spiders,
earthworms and turtles. He caught snakes in the company of Irula tribals. 
He got bitten by hot-tempered reptiles. He came out of it all grinning and
wiser.

'Free From School' is his story of a year out of school, when the learning
graph of his young life went up leaps and bounds. He wrote it to encourage
other boys and girls his age to move out of the sterile school and college
environment offered by India's antiquarian educational system, if they wish
to experience another side to life and learning. He lost nothing but gained
a lot. So did his parents. When you read his story, so will you.

See http://www.geocities.com/rahulsnakesite

Chapters in the above title deal with: a fish shop in Mapusa; learning a 
bit of farming; plant festivals (around Bardez... including Saligao and 
Siolim); learning about mushrooms;  a trip to Kerala; snakes alive; a 
vacation within a vacation; earthworms; spiders; crocodile dundee; 
learning to teach; you have sight, I have vision; surveying a forest; and 
chief guest at Belgaum.

This title -- published in print form earlier by the Other India Book 
Store (oibs at sancharnet.in) -- was recreated as an e-book using 
Free Software (the Lyx software program). Our  GNU/Linux users group in 
Goa would like to support and encourage authors wanting to put out their 
work, in the format of e-books. The idea is to showcase the potential of 
Free Software, and also to share knowledge and information... as it 
should be shared.

If you'd like to have a free copy of this e-book, send in a line. FN