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
What happens when two children find themselves wandering the night in a forest? It is a world of giant trees, sudden sounds and unseen shadows. The arresting black and white illustrations convey the author's own curiosity and wonder at the natural world in this almost wordless picture drama.
Based on a real friendship between the author’s niece and a tree, this heartwarming story reflects on the true relationship between human beings and nature. Rich colours set off against stark white give the illustrations a dramatic quality.
Lai-Lai the baby elephant is curious and playful but, like all little children, stays close to his mother. The world of elephants is explored through stunning photographs by the award-winning wildlife filmmaker, drawing the child into the forest. The informative text has lovable elephant cartoons alongside.
A farmer shouts at the sun because it is too hot to work in the field. The sun gets upset, goes away and refuses to return. Finally, a rooster tricks the sun to shine again – every day from then on. This engaging tale is based on a folktale of the Ao tribe in Nagaland. The artist-animator's illustrations are luminous and dynamic, based on his animation...
Gagan and Chikki the cat are playing, when they knock talkative Avneet Aunty's mobile phone out of her hand. It breaks. Oops! A story with elementary text, interesting sounds, and very wacky pictures.
Any time is time for cricket. Who wins? Who loses? Who cares? As long as the game goes on — anywhere, anyhow, and played by anyone. This little book of photographs, with just a line of text on each page, is a light tribute to the universal and unifying spirit of cricket. It is also a reminder that cricket is a game, games are played for fun, and everyone...
Rani searches on the beach for a gift for her grandmother. Large photographs that look at little things and small illustrations that provide the bigger picture come together in this bilingual story.
Who says the city belongs only to people? Meet Moti the elephant, Phad Phad the pigeon, Banno the buffalo, and many other two- and four-legged creatures that also live in the city. Photographs and cheerful illustrations combine with easy text to give children a fresh perspective on everyday birds and animals.
“Help! Help!” calls the big black ant when the little black ant falls into the water. But the only answers it gets are “crokk”, “isspiss”, “aaaanh”, “cheek”, “miyawwwwn” and ‘”woaw”. Who will save the baby? Unusual sounds add excitement to a familiar pattern in this folktale based story. The sometimes onomatopoeic, sometimes alliterative, sometimes...
Naani, Paati, Ajji, Aaji, Daadi, Mutthashi... So many names for Grandma, who is indeed grandmother to all around, with her songs and stories and watchful eye. In just a dozen lines of simple text that lilt with the rhythm of a song, the book captures all the warmth of a grandmother as experienced by a child. This unique bilingual book also has exciting...
Norbu's father buys him a pair of yellow shoes. But then a monkey comes along, mistakes the shoes for bananas, and whisks them away! This simple bilingual book with strong, stylised illustrations introduces beginner readers to sights typical to Sikkim.
Takdir is a tiger cub in who lives in the thick jungle of the Bandhavgarh National Park. One day, when his mother, Sita, is away and his sisters are asleep, Takdir decides to go off on his own. The story of what happens to him is told by Nanda, a wildlife photographer and filmmaker, and Latika, a wildlife biologist, who studied these tigers for over 10...
Well researched and attractively designed, this is the first book for young children on India's participation in the Olympic Games. Anecdotes, timelines, milestones and trailblazers follow the growth of the biggest and most spectacular sporting event in the world, from its origins in Greece to modern times. Stories about little known, differently abled...
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 includes a brief history of the Games from ancient times, hilarious comic strips, timelines, news reports, trailblazers and perspectives.
Who was this man who so mesmerised the world, born over a century ago but whose words and wisdom are still so current, so compelling? Films, plays, books, media images and news stories bring Mahatma Gandhi 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...
Pictures cut and pasted, comments thrown in, random thoughts, quibbles and scribbles... The scrapbook format offers unusual perspectives on a most amazing man. Did you know that Gandhi loved comics? That he would make 'pudding' with powdered chapatis? Now these are some quirky bits that aren't in the book. Add them in, or anything else you like – for in...
Based on real accounts, this is an imagined story of a boy in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami that hit several countries. It could also be the story of any child whose life is closely linked with nature. The narrative follows the feelings of the boy as he tries to comprehend the horror and bewilderment of the experience. Photographs, not of the...
“At the stroke of the midnight hour... India will awake to life and freedom,” declared Jawaharlal Nehru the night before Independence. But along with joy, there was also the trauma of Partition... Children’s voices from all over the country capture different shades of that momentous time in India’s history. A hands-on way for young children to understand...
A battle over salt? Yes, fought the Gandhi way! What guns and soldiers could not do, he did simply, quietly and non-violently, just by picking up a lump of salt. Follow Gandhiji’s famous march to Dandi to see the brilliant strategy that made the British give in and the world take notice. A hands-on way for young children to understand and explore...
Manu was always different. Unlike other girls of her time, she went to school, learnt to ride and shoot. Later, as Rani Lakshmibai, she bravely told the British, “I will not give up Jhansi!” And it is Rani of Jhansi fighting on horseback that is still the most inspiring image of India’s First War of Independence in 1857. A hands-on way for young children...
Trained to be king from the time he was 12 years old, Tipu was a bold and fearless boy – no wonder, then, that he chose the tiger for a mascot! Here’s a tale of how this Tiger of Mysuru challenged the growing might of the British in the late 18th century. A hands-on way for young children to understand and explore ‘information’, this series keeps them...
How do children cope with the pressures of divisive and contradictory forces at play in the world today? This book provides thought-provoking perspectives on peace and belonging, encouraging discussion around difficult subjects. Affirmative pieces, original and translated, by contemporary writers introduce different forms of writing – fiction, nonfiction,...
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, it makes a creative plea to readers of all ages to treat water, and, by extension, all life, with respect. Well-known writers draw upon the oral traditions of the...
