Thank you to Marianne and the Umea Library!

Joy would like to thank Marianne and her friends at the Umea Library for the much appreciated Christmas gift that allowed him to pay back the loan he took to get Ancy's Book Stall started.

Marianne is a journalist and dear friend of Joy's. They first met when she was working on her book Vilse i Kerala and later Marianne interviewed Joy for an article posted on the Umea library's intranet. The article sparked the interest of the librarians at the library and they decided to donate funds to pay back Joy's loan.

Joy and Marianne outside Ancy's

Inside Ancy's Joy receives the gift from Marianne

Welcome to Kovalam

Kovalam Beach (or simply Kovalam) is the name of the lovely beach area south of Trivandrum (or Thiruvananthapuram as it is now called) in Kerala. You can reach Kovalam by bus, rickshaw or share taxi from Trivandrum - the ride is only about 20-30 minutes in length.

Once you arrive at the bus stand you descend on foot to the level of the beach and you enter another world. Leave your cares at the top of the hill and enjoy yourself. Swim (but with care - the undertow can be dangerous), eat, drink, make new friends, read and relax. The photo is - probably pretty obviously - of Lighthouse Beach.

On Lighthouse Beach you will find Simi Cottages (now called Marina Kovalam) and nearby is Ancy's Book Stall run by Joy David. At Ancy's you're sure to find something to satisfy your reading cravings. Make sure and tell Joy that you read about Ancy's here.