10 exciting new books for the kids to cuddle up with this winter – eShe

By Neha Kirpal

Schools are closed for winter, it’s too cold to go out, and so this is the best time to catch up on reading! Here’s a list of interesting new books for children from India. With a mix of recent fiction and non-fiction titles on subjects and themes ranging from space to pets, girl power, Christmas, the Indian freedom struggle, faith and belief – we’ve got all something for all ages and interests! 

Venu loves all kinds of colours – whether warm or cool, quiet, loud, thinking, singing or silent. He carries his big box of paints and a drawing book, and paints whatever he sees, wherever he goes. But everyone tells him that the colours in his paintings are all wrong.

Finally, Venu meets Beena, who like him, too seems to get all the colours wrong. In a country where roughly 70 million people are colour-blind, this book filled with lovely colourful illustrations is a sensitive way to teach young children about colour vision deficiency.   

These are 100 amazing stories about how various ordinary things – bicycles, chocolate, ketchup, pencils – first came to India. This fascinating book by the prolific children’s book author and educationist Mala Kumar is a collection of extraordinary tales about the role played by traders, rulers, soldiers, inventors, adventurers and smugglers in bringing these simple objects into our daily lives.

When Champu rides her rocket into outer space, a billion stars in the galaxy await her. She goes onto discover each of the planets one by one, exploring their special qualities and peculiarities – burning Mercury, boiling Venus, cool Earth, red Mars, moony Jupiter, ring-full Saturn, blue Uranus and snaky Neptune. This vibrant bilingual book is a great way to introduce young readers to the vast solar system.

In the last week of November, Mom makes 12 jumbo marzipans in various shapes – fruits, stars, flowers and hearts – which are not to be eaten until Christmas. But in the next four weeks, they are all gone, owing to some mischief by Kyra and Grandpa.

The book, about the joy of the holiday season, festivity and togetherness, is also about Indian Christmas sweets – a unique blend of regional and global flavours. The recipes of kalkals, rose cookies, neureos, Bolinhas and Christmas cake are brought to life with ingredients, such as coconut, ghee, jiggery, semolina, dried fruits and spices like cloves and cardamom.

When Dangal, the country’s biggest blockbuster, comes to young Qainaat’s village, she is deeply inspired by the story of the famous kushti sisters, Geeta and Babita. Having lost her heart to wrestling, she decides to enrol in an akhara, only to find out that it’s a sin for a girl to be playing the sport. But nothing can keep Qainaat away from following her dream of wanting to learn kushti, winning competitions, medals and trophies.

This book, about breaking barriers, is also about how girls can bring glory to one’s country.

This new Heartstopper novella by YA fiction writer and illustrator Alice Oseman is a story about the Spring family children: 16-year-old Victoria, 15-year-old Charlie and seven-year-old Oliver are trying to get through a difficult Christmas with the least amount of drama possible.

With the help of black-and-white illustrations, Oseman touches on some deep themes in the story, such as internet addiction, being gay, eating disorders, mental health and therapy. The book also has an extract from Oseman’s debut book, Solitaire, which was published when she was just 19 years old. 

One of my daughter’s all-time favourite books, the fifth in The Gopi Diaries series starts when Gopi the dog accidently gets lost in the streets outside his home. While trying to find his way back, he learns about the harsh realities of life outside the comfort of one’s home.

Among other characters, Gopi meets some street dogs who aren’t exactly friendly, and understands how difficult their lives are. While his family panics and worries about him, Gopi gets to see a training centre and a dog show among other things. And he also makes some kind and helpful friends. This adorable book is fun to read for both kids and adults alike.

Wandering Wave is searching for her friend in the sea. Along the way, she meets a colourful cast of characters, including Swinging Rainbow, Magenta Serpent, Cross-Eyed Crocodile, Iffy the Yak, Pink-spotted Eagle, Mittai-Tongued Mountain, and finally, her best friend, Wave the Elephant. The end of book also includes a guide to help young readers to write their own sea adventure.

A captivating addition to Katha’s Ocean Literacy Series, the book is also available in Hindi and Tamil.

This is an adaptation of Revolutionaries: The Other Story of How India Won Its Freedom, by author, economist and urbanist Sanjeev Sanyal, published for a younger audience.

The book talks about many events and characters that the author had wondered about since childhood. His research on the subject, comprising various places, books and letters, led him to unexpected discoveries about several revolutionaries – including a long-forgotten box of revolutionary guns. The intriguing book with black-and-white sketches is both fascinating and eye-opening for all age groups.

The book is a collection of eight connected stories about an 11-year-old girl called Gulab Kalee. Set in a fictional town of Gavnagar, India, the book follows Kalee as she has various adventures in her ‘garden’, which is managed by her arborist father, while her mother, a space scientist, lives in another town. During her various explorations, Kalee discovers the ‘Topiary Twins’ – two trees that turn into children at night – with whom she has many midnight adventures. They come to her aid as she solves mysteries and problems, including how to save her father’s job and the environment.

The stories are charming and imaginative, and will appeal to young readers especially those interested in nature and the sciences.