12 great children’s books to fire your little one’s imagination this winter

By Neha Kirpal

Winter is almost here, and with holidays soon approaching, we dug out some new and interesting books for children across age groups. Nothing makes for a more valuable gift for a child!

Read on for a curated list of some newly released books for children. With multiple themes ranging from animals to sports, habits to diversity, you can pick something for every child out there!

One Elephant, Two Monkeys (2+ years)

By Chitwan Mittal and Ambika Karandikar (Adidev Press)

Through a little boy’s adventures with his animal friends, this bilingual story in rhyme introduces children to numbers (one to 10), action words, names of animals (monkey, peacock, rabbit, elephant, cat, bear, duck, fish, parrot and tiger) as well as colours (grey, brown, red, black, blue, yellow, white, purple, green, orange). It also offers a fun way to teach little ones counting!

Line Meets Line (2+ years)

By Rea Malhotra Mukhtyar and Aditya Angelo Fernandes (Lettori Press)

The book follows the journey of Line, who meets others of its kind, and joins them to form various shapes, such as letters, shapes and signs. Along the way, however, Line learns that there is no one way to be.

The book by Mumbai-based award-winning children’s author, teacher, actor and voice-over artist Rea Malhotra Mukhtyar has some lovely illustrations by Bengaluru-based visual artist and graphic designer Aditya Angelo Fernandes.

At first read, it encourages children to view the world in a different way. More deeply, it strives to start conversations about embracing individuality and diversity.

Pagdi for Sinh (4+ years)

By Chitwan Mittal and Ambika Karandikar (Adidev Press)

Join lion and his friends as they go to the bazaar to shop for some colourful Indian outfits. This humorous bilingual verse book introduces young readers to the Hindi and English vocabulary for wild animals (nilgai, bhaloo, genda, langoor, cheetal, ghariyal and lomri) as well as clothing (kurta, dhoti, topi, sari, ghagra, jutti, bindi and choori) from the Indian subcontinent.

21 Modaks for Ganesh Chaturthi (4 years+)

By Nandini Nayar and Chandrima Chatterjee (Adidev Press)

Neeraj and Nitin are most excited about modaks on the day of Ganesh’s birthday. But before they get to eat them, they have lots of work to do. They go to the market with their father to buy all the things needed to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi, including an idol of the beloved elephant-headed God.

They then help set up the puja – hanging a string of mango leaves above the door and lighting sweet-smelling agarbattis. The book also includes a simple recipe for making modak and the words of an aarti prayer, apart from touching upon the aspect of sustainability associated with the festival. 

Animal Band (4+ years)

By Chitwan Mittal and Ambika Karandikar (Adidev Press)

In the third of this series of bilingual books in verse for young readers, a band of farm friends create music with their favourite Indian instruments, and perform an unforgettable concert.

The book helps to introduce young readers to the rich musical heritage of the Indian subcontinent as well as Hindi and English words for farm animals (cow, goat, rabbit, camel, hen, sheep and mouse) and musical instruments (shankh, veena, bansuri, mridangam, tabla, santoor, sarangi and shehnai).

Lights Out (6+ years)

by Vibha Batra and Sahitya Rani (Karadi Tales)

The book is loosely based on a true story set in Pothakkudi village in Sivagangai district, Tamil Nadu, when a robin and her three eggs were found in a junction box. It left the villagers to discuss whether to leave the streetlights off every night until the chicks hatched and flew away.

After much debate, it was ultimately decided to keep the street lights off after dusk. After a few weeks of darkness, the eggs finally hatched. “Who would have thought that turning off the lights could brighten their lives!”

GoldiBOY and the Three Apes: An Isspeshal Fairy Tale (6+ years)

Written by Ashiish V. Patil, illustrated by Nikita M. Biswas (HarperCollins India)

This colourful picture book is about a teenager with a golden smile. When Goldiboy was very young, he was diagnosed with ADHD, which is why he was a little different from other children. He found it hard to focus on one thing, talk to strangers and make friends. He also liked repeating the same things, flapping his hands and spinning things. Music often calmed him.

The author’s son was diagnosed with autism at the age of two and half years, and 100 percent of the book’s earnings go to a centre for children with autism and other development differences. A modern-day take on the classic tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears, the book is an attempt to demystify the world of autism.

Wayel Kati: The Quest of the Seven Guardians (8+ years)

By Linthoi Chanu (Niyogi Books India)

This thrilling fantasy fiction with heroes and monsters is based on the myths and folklores of Manipur. It delves into the themes of nature, worship and environment preservation as well as human inclination towards magic, myth and fantasy as a means to cope with reality. This is the story of seven guardians who have been chosen to retrieve the scissor of justice, the Wayel Kati.

Led by nine-year-old Laiba, the group of seven chosen guardians attempt their magical quest. Struggling to find their true selves and achieve their one divine task, they seek the lost scissor of justice to restore balance to a world threatened by dark forces. The book comes at a time when the beautiful state is going through a troubled phase.

Kolam Kanna (8+ years)

By Vibha Batra (Penguin / Puffin)

A lively book about inclusivity, this is the story of a boy called Bharathi who wants to participate in the Kolam Kondattam Kontest being held by Pravin Paradiso Apartments, where his parents work. Kolam is a form of traditional floor art used for ceremonial design during Indian festivals. Bharathi wants to show off his creative skills but the contest is only open to women residents of the building.

Bharathi and his quirky friends set out to help him participate in the contest. While being entertaining, the book weaves in themes of class disparity, friendship, gender roles, and embracing diversity — a highly relevant read for urban Indian families.

The Dog with Two Names (9+ years)

By Nandita Da Cunha (Speaking Tiger Books)

This is a collection of 12 short stories that celebrate differences and multiple perspectives. Set in different cities from Mumbai to Kashmir, Goa to Landour, these humorous stories offer a diverse cast of characters, emotions, adventures and situations.

A girl dislikes the new ‘outsider’ at her boarding school. A boy burns with shame after he discovers why outsiders hold their noses when walking down his ‘smelly’ lane. An apple-seller is astonished at some brash tourists in his orchard. Three best friends from the gullies of Mumbai have a falling out over divergent religious beliefs.

Each story has moments of tolerance, empathy and compassion, which prove that children can stand up and make the world a kinder place.

The Book of Good Habits (9+ years)

Written by Ashdin Doctor, illustrated by Vibha Surya (HarperCollins India)

Through the characters of Meera, Avi, Rati and Nivaan, the book starts by explaining what a habit is, and how we develop them. Next, it dives into various good habits that children can cultivate – being curious, being patient, enjoying alone time, being creative, making new friends, eating healthy, expressing gratitude and learning to save.

Mumbai-based habit coach Ashdin Doctor reiterates the importance of guardians being important role models themselves, exhibiting good habits and behaviour patterns, which children eventually pick up. The book even includes a habit tracker at the end.

The Great Indian Cricket Circus: Amazing Facts, Stats and Everything in Between (13+ years)

By Joy Bhattacharjya and Abhishek Mukherjee (HarperCollins India)

This cricketing bible of sorts has among other things, sections on Indian cricket in literature and films, iconic Indian cricket fans, unusual scorecards, nicknames of Indian cricketers, cricketers who acted in movies, royalty in Indian cricket, things named after cricketers, popular myths in Indian cricket, and religion and Indian cricket.

It also has info about Indian cricketers who faced racism, famous bats of Indian cricket, food and Indian cricket, iconic sixes in Indian cricket, player-coach feuds, and iconic advertisements in Indian cricket.

With the World Cup fever just having ended, there is no better time to dig deep into the world of cricket. The perfect book for fans of the sport, trivia lovers and anyone looking for entertainment.