SAWNET: Kids Books
Nonfiction
- Aliya: Stories of the Elephants of Sri Lanka, by Teresa Cannon & Peter Davis.
Airavata Press, Victoria, Australia A celebration of the elephants and their distinctive part in the mythology, culture, economy and ecosystem of Sri Lanka. More details at the book website. (Ages 8 - 16)
- Asian Indians (Recent American Immigrants), by Susan Gordon.
F. Watts, 1990 Discusses immigrants from India, their reasons for coming, their lifestyles, and their contributions to the United States. (Ages 8 - 12)
- Buddha, by Anni Shapiro.
Delacorte Press, New York, 1994 Picture book with collage illustrations.
(Ages 4 - 8)
- Child Art with Everyday Materials, by Tarit Bhattacharjee, Kanchana Arni and Gita Wolf.
Tara Books, Chennai. An unorthodox and enabling approach to art education, where children experiment freely with different sorts of everyday material: newspaper sheets, clay, leaves, sand and even vegetables. The book features over 75 practical exercises which suggest creative ways of playing with line, design, texture, colour, form, composition and space.
(Ages 4 - 12)
- Childhood Days, by Satyajit Ray.
Penguin India, 1998. First published by Ananda Publishers, Calcutta, 1982. An autobiographical memoir by the renowned filmmaker.
[Review at Parabaas] (Ages 8 - 18)
- Count your Way Through India, by Jim Haskins & Liz Brenner Dodson.
Carolrhoda books, Minneapolis, 1990 An introduction to the land and people of India accompanied by instructions on how to read and pronounce the numbers one through ten in Hindi. (Ages 4 - 8)
- Diwali: Khushiyon Ka Tyohaar, by MeeraMasi.
MeeraMasi, California This dual language book in Hindi and English animates the traditions and liveliness of Diwali to children through rhyme, captivating pictures, and a read along CD providing both Hindi and English text.
(Ages 0 - 8)
- Gandhi: Peaceful Warrior, by Rae Bains & Scott Snow.
Troll Associates, NJ A biography of the man whose nonviolent passive resistance tactics influenced reformers in other countries. (Ages 8 - 12)
- Hindi Gym, by Aarti Chandnani.
Workbooks that make Hindi fun for kids. (Ages 4 - 8)
- Holi, by Uma Krishnaswami.
Children's Press/Grolier, 2002 Part of the Grolier Rookie Read About Holidays series. (Ages 4 - 8)
- I is for India, by Prodeepta Das.
Silver Press, 1996 Part of a series on countries and regions of the worlds, portrays India as a place rich with peoples and cultures, contrasts bustling cities with lush green paddy fields. Illustrated with photographs by the author. (Ages 7 - 10)
- In the Country of Gold Digging Ants, by Anu Kumar.
Puffin Books, Penguin India, 2009 Astonishing stories about India written by explorers who came to
the country as pilgrims, students, traders, voyagers and fortune-seekers
from the 3rd century BC till the mid-twentieth century. These visitors left
behind fascinating accounts of their perilous journeys in an unknown land;
descriptions of what the people ate, wore and thought; who ruled them
and how; the strange animals of this land, and many more startling facts
which are often the only written historical records of those times.
Filled with incredible stories and nuggets of information, In the Country of
Gold-digging Ants brings alive the exciting adventures of eleven intrepid
men and women, and may just make history your most favourite subject.
(Ages 10 - 15)
- In the Street of the Temple Cloth Printers, by Dorothy Field.
Pacific Educational Press, 1996 A finely sketched portrait in words and pictures, of the people who make and paint the fabled temple cloths of Gujarat in Western India. (Ages 8 - 12)
- India (Where we Live), by Donna Bailey.
The book depicts the life of a farm girl of dry, northwest India, and portrays life in the city of Jaipur, especially during the festival of Diwali. (Ages 4 - 8)
- Khushi Manao, by MeeraMasi.
MeeraMasi, California MeeraMasi's first children's book collection, the Khushi Manäo Series, offers five books of delightful rhymes along with an audio CD to assist with Hindi pronunciation and tone. Written in Hindi with English transliteration, this series is perfect for native and non-native Hindi speakers. (Ages 0 - 5)
- Laddoo the Elephant, by MeeraMasi.
MeeraMasi, California The playful character 'Laddoo the Elephant' introduces children ages of 6 to 30 months to Hindi, Tamil or Telugu. This DVD takes the child through a typical day of waking up, eating, playing, bathing and sleeping and helps them develop a basic vocabulary through nursery rhymes and simple words and sentences. (Ages 0 - 3)
- Manni From a World Beyond the Stars, by Benrali.
Only1Earth, 2010 Manni From A World Beyond Stars is an artist's book, combining traditional pen & ink drawings over watercolor washes and verse creating a true fusion of many cultures that goes far beyond the terminology of "East West" because South America, Central America and the Caribbean are so much more than just two worlds. They are layers and layers of multiculturalism that create worlds of their own.
Click here to see a detail from one of the images in this book
(Ages 5 - 16)
[Sawnet Review]
- Mathematwist: Number Tales from Around the World, by TV Padma.
Tulika, Chennai A world where numbers and mathematical concepts unravel in stories, folktales and anecdotes. So whether it's Dividing a Goose, Rounding up Camels or Gourmet Roulette, children at the math level of classes 6, 7 and 8 will have fun with words and numbers as well. (Ages 10 - 14)
- Mother Teresa, by Joan Gruff Cluca.
A biography of the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
(Ages 10 - 14)
- On Top of the World, by Anu Kumar.
Puffin India, Oct 2010 A month after he had set out, sixteen-year-old Arjun Vajpai stood on top of the world, having conquered Mount Everest. At that time he was the youngest non-Sherpa person in the world to do so. He remains the youngest Indian to have climbed the peak. It had indeed been a long journey. Arjun s fascination with mountains began at the age of ten, nurtured and encouraged by his parents, teachers, and close friends. As a trekker and an athlete, he had trained and worked hard to achieve this amazing feat of endurance.
This is Arjun s story in his own words. Accompany him on an adventure of a lifetime; read about his incredible ascent; and learn what it takes to be a mountaineer. On Top of the World is an unforgettable story of inspiration, fortitude and courage; of having a seemingly impossible dream and daring to chase it.
(Ages 12 - 16)
- One, by Jamuna Rangachari.
Rupa, New Delhi. 2005 Stories on all faiths practised in India, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Sikhism, Zorashtrianism with a short note on the basic tenets of the faith, and one that brings out the message of Mahatma Gandhi. (Ages 7 - 12)
- Our Non-Veg Cow and Other stories, by Mahasweta Devi.
Seagull Books, Calcutta, 1998 Translated from Bengali by Paramita Banerjee. Stories of Devi's childhood in Bengal, growing up as the eldest in a family of nine. (Ages 8 - 12)
- Out of India, by Jamila Gavin.
Hodder Children's Books, 2002 A timely memoir of her Anglo-Indian childhood which deepens the understanding of her novels . . . a unique record of dual heritage
(Ages 12 - 16)
- Ponni the Flower Seller, by Sirish Rao.
Tara Books, Chennai. The books in this series introduce and talk about a variety of working people, following them through a day in their lives.
Ponni goes from house to house selling flower garlands. In the morning she buys flowers in the market and strings them together. Then she sets off across the city to sell them. This book journeys with her as she walks her rounds.
(Ages 3 - 8)
- Puppets Unlimited wtih Everyday Materials, by Anushka Ravishankar & Gita Wolf.
Tara Books, Chennai. Shifts the focus from the finished product to the process of accidents, discoveries and mistakes by which puppets can be made, from everyday materials and found objects. Besides detailed instructions on how to make puppets, it also contains information on traditional and innovative puppetry, and a section on scripting and performance.
(Ages 8 - 12)
- Subcontinental Series, by .
Bobbie Kalman Books Various authors.
- India: The Culture, (Crabtree, N.Y. 1993)
- India: The Land, (Crabtree, N.Y. 1993)
- India: The People, (Crabtree, N.Y. 1993)
- Pakistan: The Culture (2003)
- Pakistan: The Land (2003)
- Pakistan: The People (2003) (Ages 8 - 12)
- The Children of India, by Jules Hermes.
Carolrhoda books, Minneapolis, 1993 Introduces the variety and richness of culture in India by describing the daily lives of children from different regions and social levels. (Ages 4 - 8)
- The Little Lama of Tibet, by Lois Raimondo.
An illustrated biography of Ling Rinpochey, the young Buddhist monk who will be the next leader of the Tibetan people. Ages 6 and up, but the illustrations will keep younger children interested. (Ages 4 - 12)
- The Turtle's Dream and Keys, by Benrali.
Only1Earth, 2009 A picture book inspired by the brightly colored species of box turtle, the Eastern Box Turtle of Eastern United States and Canada. Benrali has combined a love for naturalism, dreams, fantasy and poetry into a gift book which can be enjoyed by many age groups. Weaving detailed pen and ink garden drawings, etchings and watercolors readers are taken back into time through a box turtle's dream.
Click here for a fullcolor image from the book (Ages 5 - 16)
[Sawnet Review]
- Toys and Tales with Everyday Materials, by Sudarshan Khanna, Gita Wolf, Anushka Ravishankar.
Tara Books, Chennai. Toys and Tales is a multi-level toymaking book, which addresses three age groups.
For the small child: It gives step by step instructions on how to make traditional folk toys with everyday materials
For the older child: It explains simple and complex scientific principles through toymaking
For the adult: It places the tradition of toymaking in a contemporary context and addresses issues of pedagogy, play, entertainment, consumerism and the toy industry (Ages 4 - 18)
- Trash, by Gita Wolf & Anushka Ravishankar.
Tara Publishing, Chennai. Trash! is a unique combination of fiction and fact. Based on the real life experiences of ragpicker children, it tells the story of Velu, a runaway village child. He ends up as a ragpicker in a big city and must face the harsh realities of life on the streets.
The story is accompanied by facts and arguments which connect complex issues—ranging from child labour and child rights, to lifestyles, waste and recyclin (Ages 10 - 16)
[Sawnet Review]
- Varnamala Geet, by MeeraMasi.
MeeraMasi, California Hindi alphabet chart and accompanying CD. One side of the chart is written in Hindi script, while the other offers English transliteration - a helpful element to challenge yourself to learn, or to assist when you need a helping hand.
The accompanying CD includes a captivating Varnamala Geet song that you will find your children, and yourself, singing and humming all day! The CD also includes the spoken alphabet to assist with proper pronunciation, counting numbers from 1 to 30 and counting by 10s from 1 to 100. (Ages 0 - 10)
[Traditional Tales Retold]
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Last updated 21 May 2013
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