Hey there
Welcome to our page! I'm Shweta Subbiah Balakrishnan, and I'm thrilled to share my passion for reading with you. We've embarked on a journey to a delightful bookstore for young children right here on OMR Chennai. Join us in nurturing a love stories and imagination!
The Story of The Reading Elf
Where stories come alive....
The Reading Elf was born from a simple, tender moment—
a mother searching for magic for her little boy.
When my son was very small, we spent countless afternoons wandering through bookshops. He was curious, bright-eyed, always dreaming, and I wanted him to grow up surrounded by stories. We loved exploring every place we visited, but my son always imagined something a little more magical—somewhere he could curl up under a glowing mushroom lamp, or open a book and feel the world shimmer around him.
We began dreaming of a space that didn’t just offer books, but celebrated childhood.
A place where children could giggle, explore, wander, pick up a book, sit on the floor, get lost between pages, and simply be themselves.
And one day, as I watched my son searching for his next adventure with that mix of excitement and longing, the dream whispered itself clearly:
“If the bookstore we imagine doesn’t exist yet, then let’s build it.”
And so, our journey begins...
About our logo
That little elf you see in our beautiful logo is not just inspired by my son — he is my son. ​Every element you see in The Reading Elf logo comes from his original imagination: the mushroom home, the flying books, the sense of warmth and wonder. His sketch became the heart of what we wanted to build — a space where stories feel alive and reading feels like magic, not a task.​
To bring this vision to life, we collaborated with Gopika Nanjappan, founder and designer of The Teal Sky, who sensitively translated my son’s drawing into the logo you see today, preserving its innocence, whimsy, and soul while giving it a timeless visual identity.​
The Reading Elf is a celebration of childhood imagination, quiet curiosity, and a lifelong love of books. It is a space created with children in mind, but built for anyone who believes that stories shape who we become.
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