For the last six years, a daily visit to Juhu Beach was a routine for Aparna Karthikeyan because there, she discovered a community she grew to love — proactive animal lovers and the coolest canines, two of who became her own pets. This month, the author and journalist moved to Chennai but her new book for kids, titled Woof!: Adventures by the Sea (Red Panda, Westland), is a love letter to Mumbai.

The story revolves around a pack of indie dogs who discover a pup left by the beach. She is named Shingmo and together they tide through thick and thin — from racing each other to having to survive on junk food left by a garbage truck. "I cried many times while writing the book. This is a fictionalised story but real life is the harsher truth; the dogs get beaten, punched and kicked," Karthikeyan says.