Author Archives: Thebookreviewindia

Inspired by a true-life encounter of Raza H Tehsin, this book is a fun read. The entire book is like a window through which you are watching one day from the lives of Amra and Veerma, two young boys, with their usual mischiefs, worries and innocence.

Peanut goes for piano classes and while she is happy enough when she begins them, she finds them a drudgery now. Her resentment against piano practice and being made to take piano exams make her hatch a plan to put an end to it all.

Thav Thav Ghooma is a special book which can be opened up to be a running poster with a continuous drawing of a village, its pond and fields. The story is simple and describes the fields and homes. The book is ideal for the six year old where teachers can read it aloud and the children can repeat as they like. A lovely book for tell and speak activities.

A book with an interesting cover! This was the first thought I had, soon as I held the book. It seemed kind of like a bioscope, introducing us to all the characters. Children with wide smiles, lying on the ground, looking at the sky. The vibrant green and yellow background adds to the happiness.

It is natural that the children develop a connection with animals around them. Some of the studies have even said that the kids actually love animals more than toys. In the process of emotional development of children, animals play a vital role.

The book, which is also available in Hindi, primarily targets those who are beginning to read. As the name suggests, the conflict in this story revolves around a group of friends looking for their lost friend, Payal. The nature of the plot/conflict of this story makes it an ideal read for the target audiences.

This book takes me back to my children’s literature classroom; 15 enthusiastic and excited faces, happily reading out the story from story weaver’s website on the big screen, trying to notice the literary nuances, simultaneously getting formally introduced to the components of children’s books.

The book under review has an interesting publishing trajectory. Originally published by Duckbill Books in English titled Kittu’s Terrible Horrible Very Mad Day, the background to this tale is supplied by yet another tale: of a silent revolution taking place in the Panna National Tiger Reserve in Janwar Kaisal, India’s first rural skating park.

A collection of eight stories narrated by a daughter as woven by her mother(amma) during their relaxed casual conversations. The stories are from amma’s own childhood. The imagery built by the stories in the Indian set up seems closer to home. This genre of stories may work well with grade school children who love to listen to real stories from the lives of adults…

As parents we want the best for our children and as the role entails, we guide them along the initial stages of their journey in life. But kids being headstrong do not always give their parents a patient hearing. This concept has been portrayed beautifully by Vinayan Bhaskaran.

Most folktales, perhaps originating from the heart, hold the capacity to appeal to the depths of the heart that provides them with the essential distinction of crossing into global vistas. This one told in simple verse performs the needful to please gratify the sentiments. It is a typical old-world style folktale presenting the ups and downs of conflicts and acts of goodness at the same time concluding in peace and contentment.

The very first thing that catches one’s attention is the black torn part and a child peeking through it on an otherwise bright red cover picture. The story uses the colour palette beautifully as the book starts with a boy running alone on a muddy road with a beautiful yellow background followed by him finding a bright RED kite.

This never ending beautiful folktale is an all time favourite of children. The greedy and cunning Jackal and the colourful peacock were friends. Both decided to prepare a special meal of Dal Bati (a special dish of Rajasthan). Once it is ready, the peacock goes for a bath and the greedy jackal eats up the entire dish prepared by both. When the peacock shows his anger the jackal eats the peacock.

What attracted me first was the title of the book. It made me curious to know what it was that was not understood. There are probably very few books for children that have titles with a negative word in them.

The Polka Dot Umbrella & Others is a collection of 12 short stories, each dealing with aspects of life. The stories touch upon various challenges life throws at us and how to overcome them as in , ‘Dance of Victory’, ‘A Mentor Called Dadu ‘ and ‘Singular Problem’.

Teaching Pa is the story of Diya and her father, unfolding how she managed and succeeded in teaching her father, in spite of his efforts to skip the maths sessions. It is sweet of Diya to decide to teach her father and make all the efforts to make it happen. Another interesting thing is how she makes use of pea pods, and other examples from kitchen that her father is familiar with.

Homegrown middle grade fiction in India is on the rise and thankfully so! Neha and the Nose written by Ruchika Chanana brings two young detectives, one with the brains and one with the, um, nose, into the scene, where they uncover the truth about various mysteries like who stole the Sadanand Sharma Trophy for Extramural Excellence or who was stalking Harini, the head girl.

Hot Jalebis is a story which depicts the crazy rush and dangers of an Indian street. A young boy is told to bring jalebis from the nearby jalebi stall. He is repeatedly reminded by his grandmother about the crows and eagles that swoop down suddenly. He also has to overcome a temptation to eat the jalebis.

Niveditha Subramaniam’s Ammama’s Sari is a beautiful wordless book appropriate for children between 0 to 100. Please acquire it whether or not you have children in your life. It captures the essence of the Indian design philosophy of affordance of everyday materials and objects—the very antithesis of the modern affliction of ‘use-and-throw’. Subramaniam mounts exquisitely textured fabric collages that evoke the texture and feel of a Sari.

The five books that are reviewed below and the many others that I have read before, makes me wonder at the spectrum of quality that one finds in Pratham Books, as they range from excellent to mediocre to simply substandard..