It is hard not to notice Nabiya in English story classes. She listens so hard that she hardly blinks! Slowly, she begins to explore stories, delight in their words, pictures and funny moments. This story about a spirited young girl, who likes football as much as she likes storybooks that she is determined to learn to read. Using a collage of colours,...
Do roosters sing ragas? This one does, but like all true artistes gets to it after a lot of struggle! Every time he opens his mouth he sings a new tune but not the kukaroo-kuroo of the other roosters. His friends skip and stretch, stamp and roll and try to teach him. Try as he might our rooster kuka-moooooos, kuka-heeen haaans, kuka-miaooows but can't...
Dip Dip looks everywhere for her friend's lost cat. And when it finally climbs up a tree and can't come down, the only thing to do is…? Exuberant illustrations capture the spirited little girl for whom being on a wheelchair stops her from nothing! 2018: Best of Indian Children's Writing: Contemporary (English)
There was a time when happiness began to leak out of the world. Everything dried up. No colour, no food, no smiles – only hunger, sadness and quarrels. One old woman decided that something had to be done, and she heard from the wind about a magical fish that lived in a green-green lake... Told by a Gond storyteller and illustrated by a Gond artist, this...
An elephant with nail polish? Ranganna is captivated by the brightly coloured nails of his friends and wants to paint his toes too – all 18 of them! Illustrations that are a riot of colour zestfully capture the happy spirit of Ranganna.
10, 9, 8, 7 – count the children as they come leaping, riding, zooming in on cycles, scooters, rickshas… A racy counting book with a different mode of transport on every spread! Children with completely different personalities brighten up the streets. NCERT recommended
Everyone tells Laali that she's too little to do the things she wants to do. What if I really was very little, wonders Laali. She dreams, shrinks and steps into a little big world, where there's a new adventure round every corner! Bright and playful illustrations match the little girl's happy imagination.
What will you be when you grow up? To this common question, Appu has the most uncommon answers. If he can't be just ‘me', then he can be anything – or many things! With illustrations that have the lively touch of an animator, this book will open little minds to endless possibilities for the future. NCERT recommended
When rock bees build a bee colony in Gowri's balcony, her mother decides to ask Mr Ramaiah, an expert on bees, for help. They don't have to be killed, the bee master tells Gowri and her mother. Just moved to a safer place, safe for us and for them. The little girl watches fascinated… And as she learns about bees and the environment, we too are drawn into...
It is pouring rain. From her window, little Anju sees familiar scenes of a rainy day – cloudy skies, umbrellas, puddles… But her curious eyes pick up other surprises too, while her imagination plays with the raindrops sliding down her window pane. Soft watercolours drench the pages with the mood of a wet, wet day. 2018: Best of Indian Children's...
Mayor Piloo Paheliji loves to show off by asking riddles no one can answer. But someone is more than a match for him and confounds confusion by riddling him! A book that celebrates riddles with illustrations that capture all the fun.
Little Satya lives by the River Ganga in Banaras and longs to row her own boat, just like her father. But he says she's not old enough or strong enough. But Satya can't wait… One day, she makes a little paper boat and that night, she dreams and drifts into a watery world. As the story unfolds, the finely detailed illustrations and their colours heighten...
Karimuga is a rakshasa, a pleasant rakshasa. He is a beautiful rakshasa too. But that makes all other rakshasas jealous of him. Karimuga can't bear to see them unhappy... Sowmya Rajendran inverts our ideas about beauty, happiness and rakshasas with humour. Niveditha's quirky pictures add to it with little and big rakshasas romping through the pages in...
After the much-admired Let's Plant Trees, the author is now chasing and playing with big monsoon clouds! This time, too, the message is clear and simple. Rainwater is free, pure and precious. Let us save it – in buckets and wells and coconut shells…
A majestic elephant protects the forests from timber traders, tree-cutters and poachers. The animal becomes such a legend that his photograph adorns the walls of local homes. But one day, the Forest Department receives strict orders to hunt the elephant down… After the gripping Black Panther, Aravind Krish Bala returns to the Western Ghats. This riveting...
Bulbuli lives in a bamboo house in a bamboo grove, and is busy in her little bamboo world from the time she wakes up to the time she goes to sleep. Just following Bulbuli around, this story told in a rhythmic, cumulative style spotlights bamboo to make a simple green statement. Words and pictures communicate a very real sense of the versatility of bamboo...
The monsoon has failed in Yellaiah's village, and everything is dry and dusty. One day, Yella finds a kite. It is a wish-fulfilling kite, says Rajamma the fruit-seller. Soon, all his friends are making wishes – for bangles, a school bag, a full meal... Set in rural Andhra, this is a moving story about dreams and fears, matched by tender pictures that...
The stars give way to the sun, the clouds to rain, the egg to the little bird… Things change. This truth is brought to children in a charmingly simple way. Dramatic pictures flow into each other to give a sense of movement, of the idea of change.
Who should get more rotis — Ookamma or Ookaiah? A folktale about a quarrelling old couple is woven into another story about the lives of children in a village, growing up, playing, going to a government school, watching adults squabble, feeling hunger, understanding friendship and, most importantly, sitting under a neem tree and listening to stories from...
There’s once again a buzz in Birdywood – it is time for the great Games! Birds that fly and those that don’t are coming in from all over the world. Who flies fastest? Who dives deepest? While the best are tested, the rest have loads of fun! Amid much ruffling of feathers, tweeting and chirping, old records are smashed and new champions emerge, crowned by...
Boodabim floats in the sky, he swims in the ocean and he simply glows in stripes! Who is he? A cloud? A fish? A tiger? Boodabim can be anything he wants to be! Minimal text and rollicking illustrations make this a most endearing book for little ones.
One morning, a mother and child go in search of the sun. Their journey comes alive in a vast dotted landscape where lively birds, quick-footed animals and busy humans meet and share the forest, the river and the mountain… The book is a vibrant collaboration between a master Warli artist, a design student and the publishers, inspired by the incredible...
The Kite Tree changes... Its leaves fall, they grow back, flowers appear and it begins to hum with life. But that's not all. It comes up with unexpected surprises! Keen eyes and a busy imagination capture these changes, stir anticipation and raise a flurry of questions. Quiet pictures reflect the tree’s many moods to evoke the movement of the seasons.
Sky monkeys like nothing better than to float for hours. Then one day, a naughty little sky monkey does something most unskymonkeylike and there is a huge hullabaloo up above. What does she do that upsets everybody so much? Whimsical pictures add just the mood to this gently happy story that was inspired by light white clouds in a blue sky.
