Sandhya Rao is one of the finest writers for children in India. Her books have won awards and accolades: My Friend the Sea won the Ambitious Children’s Book Project award at the Berlin Children and Youth Literature Festival, 2005. My Mother’s Sari was chosen as an Outstanding International Book, 2007, by the United States Board for Books for Young People (USBBY) and the Children’s Book Council. Rights to the book have been sold for USA, Canada, Australia and the U.K. In 1996, she joined Radhika Menon to create multilingual books for children at a time when independent children’s publishing in India was nascent. She has written over 20 books. Chennai-based Sandhya has an eclectic taste in books, music and films and loves listening to stories, especially real stories. She works at The Hindu
A child's imagination transforms a sari into a train, a river, a swing... and many things magical. The unconventional pictures combine photographs and acrylics in dramatic, original ways. 2007: Outstanding International Book, United States Board for Books for Young People, USA
A cheery travel quiz to jog the mind and swing the imagination. Grand-Ant's journey is recorded in pictures that are a mix of childlike drawings and sophisticated art.
Gentle rhyme urges a child to look out of the window each night to watch the moon show. The illustrations capture the grand sweep of the night sky.
Sonabai lives by making and selling sweets with berries from her tree. All is well until Kolaba the fox enters the scene. A Marathi folktale with stylised paper-cut illustrations.
A gentle folktale from Andhra Pradesh about the magic of stories with illustrations derived from the style and colours of Kondapalli toys of Andhra Pradesh.
Big, burly Tarlochan is a champion wrestler, eager for some real challenge. The pictures for this robust folk fantasy from Punjab imbibe the spirit of its fun-loving feisty people. Phulkari, 'flower-work' embroidery typical of Punjab, adds richness to the illustrations.
Nazneen carefully cooks some fragrant marzwangan kurma for a special family dinner. But just when it is all ready, guests arrive. The illustrations use traditional Kashmiri embroidery motifs to provide ambience for the story.
Simple text, sound words and affectionately drawn pictures capture the mood of a sudden storm in a snail's world.
When the people beg a lazy god to find land, he goes to the astrologer for help. A zany story from the Bhilalas of central India, with pictures based on original mud-wall paintings. 2000: Excellence in Publishing, Federation of Indian Publishers
A timeless Marathi folktale about one-haired Ekki and two-haired Dokki, illustrated with happy triangles.
A boy who doesnt stop talking, furry cats and clacking needles... Shobha has a dream every night, but she always wakes up before they end. How do these dreams end? She really has to know.
When his mother is away and his sisters are asleep, Takdir the tiger cub decides to go off on his own. His story is told through endearing photographs and simple text.
A well researched and attractively designed book for younger readers with stories about little known, differently abled and well known Indian sportspeople. Anecdotes, timelines and milestones trace the evolution of the Games. Activities engage children more closely with sport, sporting issues and the sporting spirit.
The first comprehensive book for slightly older readers that traces the Olympic movement in India. Exploring the seven Olympic and Paralympic values through the lives of Indian sportspeople, it also contains hilarious comic strips, timelines, news reports, trailblazers and perspectives.
Who was this man who so mesmerised the world, born a century and a half ago but whose words and wisdom are still so current, so compelling? Films, plays, books, media images and news stories bring him regularly into our homes. His birthday, 2 October, is the International Day for Non-violence. But how do we relate this familiar yet distant icon to a child...
Bits and pieces come together to form patterns in this kaleidoscope of pictures cut and pasted, comments thrown in, random information, quibbles and scribbles… and empty pages to fill.
A fictional story of a boy caught in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami offers a way for children to come to terms with natural calamities. Warm photographs reinforce images of bonding. 2005: Ambitious Children’s Book Project, Berliner Kinder und Jugendbuchpreis, Germany
Affirmative writings on peace, in a variety of styles, to help children understand and cope with the world around them. Contributors include Paul Zacharia, Ambai, Asokamitran and Safdar Hashmi.
This timely collection retells stories from mythology and folklore to focus on the need to protect, conserve and value water. Together with interesting facts and a timeline from earliest times, this book makes a creative plea to readers of all ages to treat water, and, by extension, all life, with respect 2010: Excellence in Book Production, Federation...
