Salima Alikhan grew up listening to the stories read to her by her parents. Her favorites growing up were the dark tales of Hans Christian Anderson and the Grimm Brothers. She did the illustrations for the book, Rocky Mountain NIght Before Christmas for the Pelican Publishing Company. The Pied Piper of Austin is the first book she has written.
Storyline of the Book
There are bats flying everywhere in Austin, Texas. They are driving the people of Austin crazy. The people complain to the mayor who isn't sure what to do. One day a strange man appears who offers to help with the problem provided the people trust and pay him.
The man, or Piper as he becomes known, plays music on a silver pipe. The bats begin to emerge from all the places they have been. The Piper leads the bats to the Congress Avenue Bridge. The people are thrilled that the bats are gone.
The Piper comes to the mayor for payment. The mayor has other plans for the money and pretends he forgot he was supposed to pay the man. The Piper plays more music and leads the children of Austin into the mountains where they disappear.
One child is left behind because he has a broken leg. The child tells the grownups where the Piper has taken the children. The people of Austin offer triple to get their children back.
The Bats of the Congress Avenue Bridge
The bats in Austin are of the species Mexican free-tail. Over a million of them actually live under the Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin. People come to the area near the bridge each night at dusk to watch the bats fly out from under the bridge. Scientists estimate that the bats eat over twenty thousand pounds of insects every night. The best times to watch the bats are from March to November. The bats are an unique tourist attraction in Austin Texas.
Illustrations in The Pied Piper of Austin
The illustrations are water color paintings. The colors are vibrant and add to the enjoyment of the story. The people portrayed are lifelike as are the bats. In a number of the pictures, one almost expects the bats to come flying off the page.
Salima Alikhan currently lives and works in Austin, Texas. She has included many actual areas of Austin in her pictures. There is the Barton Springs and the Sculpture Garden in addition to the Congress Avenue Bridge. The area was well researched and the pictures add authenticity to the story.
Uses of the Book
Perhaps the most obvious use of the book is as a prelude to a trip to Austin, Texas. It introduces the reader to many of the tourist attractions in the city. The book would help young people appreciate what they are seeing and they would relate based on their knowledge from reading the book.
Another use of the book is a folktale explanation to the Mexican free-tail bats living under the bridge in Austin. For generations people have been trying to explain natural occurring phenomenon. The Pied Piper of Austin provides a fun explanation to why millions of bats live under a bridge.
This book is beautiful both in storyline and illustrations. Readers can expect many more fine offerings from this new author.
The Pied Piper of Austin Written and Illustrated by Salima Alikhan
Pelican Publishing Company, Inc, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-58980-629-0
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