Lavanya Karthik’s delightfully narrated and illustrated biography of Janaki Ammal, a path-breaking woman scientist in colonial India, inspires young readers. Edavalath Kakkat Janaki Ammal was one of India’s first female scientists, but before she broke glass ceilings, she was just a little girl in Kerala’s seaside town of Thalassery. The short, illustrated biography by Lavanya Karthik charmingly captures her story, looking for a dream world away from her hometown with rigid rules.The book is Janaki’s journey from being a seed to a blossoming forest. The storytelling is captivating even though the …