Not Just Pooh, Pan, and Potter: Issue 09
Why you should hold off buying that e-reader for your child, Books of August, Interesting must-reads, and Bring Ganesha home with this series!
Dear Book Lover,
There has been a subtle boost in the subscribers this month (Thanks Dad!) and so I thought I’d say Hey! Welcome one and all! Glad to have you stop by. I hope you find something you like reading here and worth sharing with another parent.
This newsletter is a part of Mother of Readers, a subscription-based, curated book recommendation service for children. Books are curated based on the child’s interests, hobbies, and reading ability ensuring that the child will fall in love with reading when paired with the perfect books, making it easier for parents to raise a reader. Click to subscribe!
Not Just Pooh, Pan, and Potter, a fortnightly newsletter, is an attempt to look at books, characters, authors, and reading lists beyond the usual suspects. Let’s laugh along with Charlie and Lola and give Hungry Caterpillar a break. Let’s reach for Toto the Auto and see our cities drawn in those books. Let empower our kids to find their own favourite characters and let’s normalise family reading as a legit activity! Sounds fun? Let’s do it!
Raising Readers: Are E-Readers An Option? Where Is The Space For All These Books!
Pic courtesy: Edstein
If we had our way we would all have ceiling-high bookshelves, filled with neatly stacked books, arranged by genre or author or colour or what have you. We would Tsundoku, create TBR piles, and enjoy book after book with a hot cuppa tea. But reality called and told us that most of us live in matchbox-sized houses and we simply do not have the space for these insane dreams, let alone ceiling-high bookshelves!
A lot of parents who subscribe to Mother of Readers ask me if it is wise to invest in an E-reader for their kids to read books. Now, here are my thoughts (for what they are worth!) on the subject.
E-readers are convenient, no doubt but for adults. Children, just learning to read, benefit a lot from physical books. Choosing one from the shelves, looking at the cover, turning the pages, and feeling a sense of accomplishment when they turn the last page of the book are all important to boost a young reader’s morale. I believe the whole process — from choosing the book to reading the last word and discussing the book — should be considered as reading.
E-readers can store a lot of books and that means buying more books which means more books to help raise a reader, right? Right, but also wrong. Excessive screentime aside, staring at a screen may not be as attractive for a young child. It seems supremely practical to us but as we all know, in an attempt to raise readers, practicality may not be your best approach. IMHO there is something to be said of the whole tactile page-turning experience or the visual experience of colours jumping out at you from a picture book.
So I guess, what I am trying to say is, hold off buying that e-reader at least until your child has willingly signed their soul to the world of books. Get yourself one instead and when they are old enough you could give your old e-reader to them and get yourself a new one!
Pic courtesy: Jeff Koterba
I couldn’t resist adding another great cartoon!
What A Booktastic Month August Has Been!
August was a blink-and-miss-it month but I managed to read some really amazing books! I hauled my behind to the annual Books by Weight sale and I am kinda glad I did because I came back with 9 kgs worth of books! Though the sale did not have the books I really wanted, I managed to grab some much-loved classics because I wanted them to be a part of our personal collection.
I highly recommend looking up book sales like these because they are a great way to add to a collection, pick up books for half the price, and try out new authors and genres. Also what I did this year, buy classics because I find that my kids love going back to them.
As always, here is a round-up of everything interesting I read this month, just in case you are searching for what to read next. There is a mix of picture books, grownup books and everything in between. (Click on the highlighted name of the book to read the book)
Ghachar Ghochar, by Vivek Shanbhag: This is a spectacular peek into the paranoid world of the lower-middle class that suddenly comes into money. With masterful observations and a unique insight into the lives of one family, Ghachar Ghochar may be a quick read but one that remains on your mind long after you are done. Each character is layered and familiar. The setting of the story almost becomes another character. Definitely a book you should read to get out of that reading slump.
Paper Moon, by Rehana Munir: This book had me smiling the whole time. My husband is a ‘Bandra-boy’ and we often drive through the bylanes taking in the surroundings and the quaint little shops. Paper Moon is the story of Fiza who inherits a sum of money from her estranged father to set up a bookstore. This incident changes her life and the way she looks at her relationships. Add in a healthy dose of romance and tons of Bandra sightings and book references and you have a winner! Perfect to read at one go through the night!
The Wooden Robot and the Log Princess, by Tom Gauld: Love fairy tales? This one is for you and your child! One of my favourite cartoonists, Tom Gauld makes a grand entry into the world of children’s literature with this picture book. This fairytale is about a wooden robot and a princess made from a log for a royal couple who can’t have children. The siblings spend all day playing but the princess hides a secret. A strange turn of events makes the Robot go in search of his sister and their journey back home makes up most of the story. The illustrations are so ridiculously good you will want to frame every page. The story will reintroduce your child to magic and this book will be a mainstay for bedtime reading for a long time to come! Read the review here.
On a Beam of Light: The Story of Albert Einstein, by Jennifer Berne and illustrated by Vladimir Radunsky: What a lovely way to introduce your child to one of the world’s greatest scientists! This book traces the life of Albert Einstein from his birth to when he became a world-renowned scientist. The book and its illustrations describe his struggles with being odd early on in life to how he went on to be inspired by space and time and learning more about the unknown. Highly recommend this one! Read the review here.
Whale in a Fishbowl by Troy Howell and Richard Jones: Imagine a huge fishbowl in the middle of the city with a whale named Wednesday living in it! Sounds unbelievable right? This book is the story of Wednesday the whale who has always lived in the fishbowl and is the only home she ever knows. One day a little girl mentions the sea to Wednesday. What ensues is Wednesday’s quest to find out more about the sea and her journey back home. Beautifully illustrated and a story that can be read on so many levels. Which one of us can say we haven’t felt like the whale at some time?
Every Colour of Light: A Book About the Sky, by Hiroshi Osada and illustrated by Ryōji Arai: I won’t lie, I needed a break after reading this book. It shook me to my very core with its stunning illustrations. Spread across pages, the illustrations will grab you, shock you, and keep you riveted. The words explain the coming of a rainy, wet day and the way the sky changes in bold detail. The first page starts with, “Look it’s raining” and builds up to lightning and thunder and then suddenly it stops raining and the air clears, the sky changes, the stars and the white moon comes out and it is time to slowly fall asleep. This is a keepsake, people. Go for it!
My Heart, by Corinna Luyken: A heart can be so many things — it can be tiny, it can be a window, it can be a slide or it can be a fence — on so many different days. There are days when it is moody and there are days when it grows. This visually stunning book with a yellow and grey mood board is a perfect little read for long, rainy days when you are all cuddled up with your child and both want to express what you feel but are searching for the words. This book provides those words with some brilliant pictures.
Art Is Everywhere, a series of books by Aparna Kapur and Bijal Vachharajani and illustrated by Priya Kurian, Adrija Ghosh, Canato Jimo, Sheena Deviah: This series of three books highlights that art and beauty can be everywhere if you just know how to look. Together with crazy, funny rhymes for words by some of our favourite authors and darling illustrations by some of India’s best illustrators, this series is not just fun to read but will also inspire many arts and crafts on long afternoons. Stock up on these before your next holiday season! Read the review here.
Who Stole Bhaiya’s Smile, by Sanjana Kapur and illustrated by Sunaina Coelho: As I said in my Instagram stories, this book should be made mandated pandemic reading for kids. Depression is not an easy topic to talk about with your child but this book creates the perfect segue to do just that. Pandemic fatigue is real and our kids are affected no matter how much we try to keep things normal. This book with its beautiful words shows Chiru being sad when her Bhaiya stops playing with her. Her Bhaiya is too busy with Dukduk who manifests in many different forms. In its own unique way, the book talks about society and how they react, what loved ones should do, and how difficult it is for Bhaiya to snap out of it. This book moved me and I would recommend this one thousand times over. Read the review here.
Interesting Reads From The Web On Children’s Literature
Ever wondered what our country’s favourite children’s book is? Or maybe what children love reading in the UK or USA? Great article on the favourite children’s book of each country. Don’t really agree with India’s.
A friend recently remarked about whether it was easier for celebrities to get a book deal? Really seems like it doesn’t it? Read about Padmalakshmi’s foray into children’s books. Also, she has a Caldecott-honoree to illustrate!
The much-beloved book The Tiger Who Came to Tea was slammed recently for reinforcing gender stereotypes. Are these books next? Some of them are all-time classics and may shock you!
Bring Ganesha Home With This Must-Watch Show Recommendation!
What better way to ring in the festivities than let your child watch a show while you are busy making the modaks? So if you are letting the TV babysit, why not let them watch a show that teaches them about the festival?
Pic courtesy: Netflix
Bal Ganesh on Netflix is fun, quirky, and so completely watchable! Go on innumerable adventures with Bal Ganesh and his pal, Mooshak the mouse. Tales from Ganesha’s childhood and his insatiable feast make up most of the stories. Everyone in the pantheon makes an appearance and the stories are like watching a visual recording of Amar Chitra Katha books. Something your child is sure to remember and narrate to the grandparents the next time they see them! Psst…I have recently discovered mythological shows have a strange effect on the kids. They love watching them and manage to understand what is being said in Hindi when you play with English subtitles. A total win-win situation for me!
If you like what you read, please share it with your family and friends. Help a parent raise a reader and tell them about Mother Of Readers, the curated book-recommendation service. You will be blessed with good book karma for life!
See you in two weeks!
Rati Girish
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