Little Princess Tony Ross

HAHAHA to the 'Little Princess' books that always make us laugh.

We stumbled upon this series when we were watching BBC's channel 5 programs and Man! what a find! Ever since we have been squealing in delight on discovering  these books  in libraries or book shops here in Bangalore!

Tony Ross is the author/illustrator and here is a lovely write up about his other work (also illustrated the Horrid Henry series )

This adoringly impish princess is the main character of this book series; surrounded by grown ups of the royal household such as her parents- the king and queen, little brother, admiral, cook, nanny, prime - minister, and the doctor . Lovely illustrations;crazy illustrations- Little Princess wearing a saucepan on her head, the nose digger cook, a doctor with chicken pox , a delightful little girl with a crown---what's not to love and laugh!

Also, every 'Little Princess' story has some endearing thought attached. 

Take this book "I want to be" as an example. The cover has a lipstick smeared face and the story begins with her announcement of  " the time has come to grow up". The princess goes around asking "what is the best way to be?"

 "Kind like your father", suggests her mother; "Loving, like your mother", suggests her father; "Clean", says the cook standing in a filthy kitchen as he sticks a finger in his nose ; the prime minister, worried about his last piece of a puzzle says ``be clever''; and the doctor--covered with pox--advises her to "be healthy". Finally confused with all these replies she goes to her nanny who lovingly lifts her up in her arms and instructs her to " Be yourself"

At the end sitting on her potty she declares "I want to be tall" and in comes her little brother saying " You are already tall"!

Such giggles.

Dolma visits the city

School closes for the winter break and Dolma is excited about her vacations. She is singing her father’s favourite song while waiting for him to come home. On seeing her dad, Pa-La , Dolma runs up to him in joy. But Pa-La doesn’t share her excitement about school holidays and Dolma remembers why. He will soon have to go away to the big city to earn a living. Like many other Tibetan refugees of the Phuntsokling refugee camp , in Chandagiri, Orissa , Pa-La will once again spend the winter away from Dolma and her mother selling sweaters in Bangalore. Although Dolma loves to sing, no one can coax a song out of Dolma after her Pa-la goes away. 

But Ama-La , Dolma’s mother, has a surprise for Dolma. They are going to Bangalore to help and be with Pa-La. Dolma visits a big Indian city for the first time- excited and nervous- observing the traffic, customs, markets and the people. Dolma does her best to help not only in setting up the shop but also in cooking the Thukpa, organizing a community feast, and celebrating Losar, the Tibetan New Year, with other Tibetans sellers in Bangalore. In the end, much to her Pa-La’s delight, Dolma sings a lovely Tibetan folk song for every one present.

A gift from a friend,Benson,  this book didn't catch my 5 year old's fancy for a while because of the long text. But once we did a reading together, she was on a roll. I often saw her seeking it out and reading it and attempting to mimic some of the words and it soon became a hot favourite!

Also written as a political commentary  ( which book on Tibet and its people wouldn't be ) Aravinda Anantharaman cleverly introduces  Tibetan customs, language, food, and culture through a simple story.  This  book can be a great way to encourage discussion about different communities, life in exile,  and at the same time about the hopes and aspirations of children alike. 

At the end a well compiled glossary provides more nuggets of information. There is even an interesting glossary of Tibetan words used in the book. It is one of the two children’s books written as Meyul series that attempt to offer children a glimpse of life in an exile community. (Meyul is a Tibetan word that means a place that is not one’s home. ) More on this here: http://www.thinktibet.org/project/books/dolma-visit-the-city

Princess Poppy

If you are a parent like me who cringes at anything related to Barbie but your kid is so into princesses and fairies and ends up looking at all sorts of books with a Barbie image on them then Princess Poppy is your answer!

These are a series of attractive books with great stories designed for a little girl reader and their Barbie hating moms!;))

Everything about the book will appeal to the 4-5 year old princesses who would love the dainty flowers, tiny golden stars, the little envelope with a note right in front, the colour scheme , the map of Honeypot Hill featuring in every book - everything!

All the characters have such kind faces and the focus is on the story and less on the dress/ hair/makeup or looks of  'Poppy' and her friends and Family. The stories are about friendship,  sharing, feelings, standing up for yourself -such lovely themes!
However, my favourite part is their tag line, "Every Little Girl is a Princess".

Here's a nice interview with the author, Janey Louise Jones : http://clubs-kids.scholastic.co.uk/clubs_content/2170
Veronica Vasylenko does  a fabulous job of illustrating the stories but seems to have got little mention of her work on the web.
Ah! Also! The Random House group has developed a nice website for your kid to tinker around after she is done with the reading. http://www.princesspoppy.com/

Today Was a Terrible Day-Patricia Reilly Giff

Absolutely delighted reading this book!

On first glance it does seem it is in line with Judith V's book, 'Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day' but it differs with a twist in the tale and its classroom setting.
Susanna Natti has done a wonderful job of illustrating those frustrating emotions and feelings as well as school life. I loved the hand written note-it looked so real with the blue ball point ink!
In my internet search about Patricia I came across her blog and understood the book better. Patricia was a teacher for 20 years. As part of a write up on her here, she says,
"All of my books are based in some way on my personal experiences, or the experiences of members of my family, or the stories kids would tell me in school."
I liked this book even better when I read this as well in the write up: "I want the children to bubble up with laughter, or to cry over my books. I want to picture them under a cherry tree or at the library with my book in their hands. But more, I want to see them reading in the classroom. I want to see children in solitude at their desks, reading, absorbing, lost in a book."

Worth recommending for talking to your kid about having a sense of humour. My kid laughs loudly every time we go over the , "Hello Michael? This is Snakey." bit in the end.
Worth recommending also for narrating how school life really is-being called names, being laughed at, feeling left out , and then happy times because I really do believe children live in the moment.
But most of all worth recommending for the delicate teacher-student bond that shines through in this book.

Spot Goes Splash

My mom had saved this second hand book from a book collection drive in her apartment housing. She saved it for Tuhina and gave it to her when she was just over a year old. Ever since, its been Tuhina's  favorite books. Even now with many pages out of its binding, the book has a special appeal for her. No wonder, because Eric Hill designs, writes, and illustrates such charming stories around Spot and his friends. His first book ,"Where's Spot?", is a lift the flap kind of book which is a BIG hit with toddlers.

I like the fact that Spot is so well mannered and listens to his mommy! ;))
I like the fact that the focus is on everyday but such important things in a child's life - like playing a game of peek-a boo with friends; being cheerful; spending time with grandparents; and sailing a boat in the bathtub.

Short sentences, simple story line, great big font, bright illustrations, and an adorable puppy-what else can you ask for in a good book for children? There are several books about Adventures of Spot- all published by Puffin books. Buy or borrow at least one to help your child discover this delightful puppy!

If you are into multimedia then this website on Spot is a great resource as well: http://www.funwithspot.com/ And here's a nice interview I chanced upon on my search for Eric Hill's perspective on his books and Spot: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKdelTJmct8&feature=relmfu

Enjoy!

I am Too absolutely small for school

I learnt all about Charlie and Lola and its author and illustrator, Lauren Child, from Cbeebies. (It was the time when Tuhina was a toddler and Cbeebies our most reliable nanny!)
Every time I would see the credits of the Charlie & Lola show , I would wonder about the books. I lucked out  last year when I found a Charlie & Lola book in the annual Strand Book Sale. Priced Rs. 95/-,  I thought it was a steal.
Published by Candlewick Press and categorized for the 3-6 ages, the book featured here is a visual treat. I love the artwork! I love the animations! And I love the characters!
Lola is a very imaginative child with a great vocabulary. She has her own logic and her own way of seeing the world. She has a whole load of adverbs in her sentences that makes the reading such a delight! I would love to speak English the way she does! Charlie is her brother who introduces Lola as, "I have this little sister, Lola. She is small and very funny". Charlie makes a great big brother- he pampers Lola, takes care of her, listens to her, plays with her, and humors her. At the end its also Charlie's imagination that helps Lola out-- helps her get over her fear of monsters, or her fear of attending school or get her to clean her room.

Reading these books and watching the shows on TV- you can make out that Lauren Child has had fun in creating her work! And that's why these books are extra special!

The TV series is brilliant. The voice overs are really in line with the characters. And if you would like to linger on the Charlie & Lola feel for a bit more, the book is a perfect compliment.