Being Gandhi
Author: Paro Anand Publisher: HarperCollins Children’s About the Book: How many times are kids supposed to study Gandhi? Come September and out comes the bald head wig, round glasses, white dhoti, tall stick … that’s about the extent of how today’s kids engage with the Mahatma. Chandrashekhar is one such teen. Bored by the annual […]
Grit: The Major Story
Author(s): Major DP Singh , VR Ferose , Sriram Jagannathan Publisher: Hachette India About the Book: Grit: The Major Story is the true account of a man who rose from humble beginnings to become a hero. Faced with the tragic loss of a limb while serving on the frontlines during the Kargil War, Major Singh’s […]
Somnath Hore: Wounds
Author: Likla Lall Illustrator: Kripa Bhatia Publisher: Art1st Enterprise About the book: Wounds talks to children about difficult emotions. It brings them closer to the feelings of pain, anger, fear and uncertainty through the life of the eminent artist Somnath Hore. This picture book biography takes you through the sculptor’s and printmaker’s journey with the […]
Rain Must Fall 🏆
Author:Nandita Basu Publisher: Duckbill Books About the book: Rumi is not too enthusiastic about accompanying Baba to the sleepy village of Shankerpur, where he is planning to convert their ancestral home into a bed and breakfast. But Rumi is happy to be away from school and friends who have problems understanding Rumi’s identity.In the middle […]
Bandilanka’s Forgotten Lives
Author: Kamakshi Pappu Murti Publisher: Leadstart About the book: Bandilanka, a fictional village in Southern India, represents many such ones across the Indian subcontinent, still caught up in the age-old customs, and superstitions that are destructive at times. The characters in this collection have each faced some form of injustice or loss. ‘A cleaning woman’s […]
The Secret Life of Debbie G.
Author: Vibha Batra Illustrator: Kalyani Ganapathy Publisher: Harper Children’s About the book: It all started cos I wanted to mess with the Invincibles (the superbrats). #SorryNotSorry. But one thing led to another, and before I knew it, I was hitting out at everyone, even the Incredibles (the geeks) and the Invisibles (the losers). Seriously, my […]
The Teenage Diary of Razia Sultan
Author: Anitha Murthy Publisher: Talking Cub About the book: Razia Sultan, born to iltutmish of the slave dynasty, was groomed from a young age by her father to learn all the skills of a ruler. Brave, strong, confident and learned, she was unlike the women of the times. She went on to defy the orthodoxy […]
Queen of Earth
Author: Devika Rangachari Publisher: Duckbill About the book: ‘I am Prithvimahadevi, the goddess of the earth.’ Prithvimahadevi is the daughter of the powerful Somavamshi king of Kosala. Her life is circumscribed by the rules that govern the existence of women of her royal family. She can only hope that she will marry a king whose […]
Oonga 🏆
Author: Devashish Makhija Publisher: Tulika About the book: Every now and then, the lush Green of the hills is hacked by wastelands of bleeding red Earth and limbless tree stumps. Over these, a signboard ‘India aluminum inc.’—With a big eye—keeps an eerie, humming, omnipotent watch. And it is with riveting cinematic metaphors like this that […]
Nomad’s Land
Author: Paro Anand Publisher: Talking Cub About the book: Shanna and Pema, two girls growing up in a big city, meet at their new school. They come from displaced communities—people who had to flee their land to escape persecution. Shanna is a Kashmiri Pandit, and Pema comes from a nomadic tribe whose people called the […]