Kane Miller Publishing Company, Tulika Books, and Kali and the Rat Snake....

Kane/Miller Publishing Company - A great resource for multicultural literature

Kane/Miller is a small publishing company in the U.S. that publishes children's books that have been previously published in other countries. You can check their online catalog to find out the books they have published in the past, and the ones to come out this year. I recently ordered their free catalog online and got it by mail last week. It's a wonderful resource to have so I know what books to check out based on what they have published so far.

Thanks to Jen Robinson for providing me with the link to Kane/Miller. Jen has an amazing blog and a website - Growing Book Worms, and JKR books where she writes about children's books. Her passion for children's literature is seen from the dedication with which she writes on both her websites - very inspiring and an exceptional resource in the kidlit blogosphere.



Kali and the Rat Snake by Zai Whitaker is one of the books selected from India that Kane Miller has listed in their catalog. Sathish had mentioned Kali and the Rat Snake on his blog last year. Interestingly, Jen Robinson also has a review about the same book on her blog.

Here is Sathish's write-up about the book and other intersting titles by Tulika publishers.


Kali and The Rat Snake by Zai Whitaker -

Originally published by: Tulika Books, Chennai

Kali and the Rat Snake is a wonderful children's book by Tulika Books based in Chennai. We bought this book for Sooraj and I have probably spent more time admiring the illustrations than him. The illustrations are by Srividya Natarajan and story by Zai Whitaker. It is a story of a small girl named Kali, who is from Irula tribe, trying to join a mainstream school. It deals with the discrimination that she faces and circumstances that help her to overcome and become friends with her classmates is illustrated charmingly.

The book is affordable (costs Rs.100/- in India) and Tulika Books seems to have a pretty good variety of books for children of various age groups. Some of the interesting books that I found out about from their website include - All About Nothing (a story about discovery of zero), The Why-Why Girl ( a book by Mahasweta Devi ).

All the illustrations seem to be based on the story line. If the story is based in Rajasthan ( Eyes on the Peacock's Tail ), the illustrations would be based on the folk art of that region. In this case, the illustrations are based on the traditional phad cloth paintings of Rajasthan.

Almost all the books are translated into Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam and Kannada. A few of them are also translated into other languages like Oriya etc. Some of the books are bilingual. The editors of Tulika have an interesting article on the concept of bilingual books.

Definitely a great collection based on regional folk tales. I plan to buy a few more of them at regular intervals for Sooraj (and partly to admire the illustrations!)

The Road to Mumbai

Are you ready to travel to Mumbai to attend a wedding with Shoba and her monkey, Fuzzy Patel? Well, Fuzzy may not be overly excited about the fact that I am inviting you to the wedding.

In any case, I am going to let you climb aboard Ruth Jeyaveeran's "The Road to Mumbai" so we can travel around India, and may be in the end, we can sneak in at the wedding without Fuzzy's knowledge! :-)

Jokes apart, "The Road to Mumbai" is a "first class" ticket to a magical adventure that a little girl named Shoba and her monkey Fuzzy Patel undertake across India in order to attend the wedding of Fuzzy's cousin Poori, who is another monkey of course! They decide to use the bed they are sleeping in as a "jumbo jet" in order to land in India because Shoba thinks planes are too stuffy.

Spinning off into the midnight, first the bed lands somewhere in the deserts of India. There, Fuzzy and Shoba meet Ismael, the Camel and Anil, the coconut juice vendor. Then, they scamper around to other places zigzagging their way across India meeting a group of elephants, a snake charmer, a snake named Asha, a group of monks etc. etc.

Fuzzy, with a certain snooty attitude (and a cute, long, curly tail that Shoba uses as a handle to carry) keeps dissuading everyone that they meet on the way from following them to the"boring monkey" wedding. Snobbish as he may sound, but his playful spirit is certainly worth falling in love with! Finally, Fuzzy and Shoba manage to land in Mumbai right at the wedding site only to discover something to Fuzzy's utmost disappointment.

Well, I will let you discover for yourself what happens at the wedding, who the wedding guests were, and what were the wedding gifts the two returned home with. It is a happy ending after all just like one of those Bollywood movies - Fuzzy's cousin Poori and his bride even get to go on their honeymoon in a rickshaw! Well, chances are it could very well have been a dream? Who knows? In the end, there are a couple of clues that can set you thinking and dreaming about the wedding the two attended...!

The artwork is delightful, and can transport you to the magical journey that Shoba and Fuzzy are part of in India. The use of pinks and purples and the portrayal of Shoba, the main character, in pink pajamas might make one think if this book might be suitable just for little girls. I would disagree. I know some moms who won't read books to their little boys if it is too girly, and vice-versa. I think we should look beyond these biases, and enjoy a good book just for the appeal of its story and illustrations.

It is a great read-aloud book for 4 to 8 yr olds. A terrific multicultural adventure story with a simple theme that is an Indian wedding, and provides a lot of non-fictional information about the Indian culture.

To add some of our experiences with the book:

Pros:

1) My 4 yr old fell in love with the monkey character, particularly for his name - "Fuzzy Patel".

2) Personally, I have enjoyed reading this book to my daughter for these reasons a) The Indian wedding theme for its multicultural appeal. b) Shoba's character - I could see that my daughter could see herself in playful Shoba c) Beautiful text and illustrations that went hand in hand. For instance, the drawings of women in their saris and the way the author has described the women's saris - " it fluttered like butterfly wings" ; "the coconut juice felt like a cool waterfall running down to Shoba's toes"...Lovely, isn't it?

3) My daughter and I loved the curvy eyes of the characters - a pointer to their emotions.

Cons:

1) Although the illustrations were fantastic, I thought there was lot more to offer about India than the cliched snake-charmer, the elephants etc.

2) I hate to complain about this one and sound overly critical. As much as I enjoyed reading this one to my little girl, and as much as she enjoyed looking at the pictures and the characters, I thought some of the text were more fun for me than for my little girl. I thought it might be a little difficult for children around my daughter's age to understand some of the text - ...For instance, - "snake with an artistic temperament", "honeymoon..." etc.

Bottomline: Most kids will enjoy the pictures and get the overall story at age 3-6. Older kids might be able to appreciate the text better (say like 8 yr olds). It was hard for me to read some of the complicated words to my daughter knowing very well she wouldn't understnd what they meant given her age. But, I have to admit that my daughter understood and enjoyed the overall plot of the story, and the stunning illustrations that were refreshingly tasteful just like "the coconut juice" that Ruth Jeyaveeran describes in her story!

This book is a real treat for little ones and grown-ups alike! Sheer magic and a fantastical adventure - who needs morals and lessons in a story - don't we have enough of those already? Well, there's also an added bonus - the last page of the book offers a glossary of words that explains the foods in the book such as Jelebi, Gulab Jamun,Sari, Rickshaw etc. There is even a map of India with details of Fuzzy and Shoba's round-about journey.

Other books illustrated by Ruth Jeyaveeran include The Happiest Tree written by Uma Krishnaswamy. One of her recent adventures is "The Spectacular Adventures of Sophie and Sebastian"

Babies

BABIES was published in 1963. The author is Gyo Fujikawa, who was raised in a Japanese household in California.

This book is something that you and your baby can enjoy together. It can also help a toddler prepare for the arrival of another newborn in the house by walking him/her through the world of babies.

I like the book because it exudes sweetness, it is warm and tender. Pictures of babies that make you smile, that make you appreciate how they make even the mundane things in life a pleasure. Inside, is a portrayal of everyday activities that babies do - crying, getting changed, eating, sleeping, drinking and the like. There are drawings of cheerful babies running around, naughty lilliputians preoccupied with mischief-making and the really cherubic ones busy with acts of goodness. There is neither a storyline nor a moral. However it succeeds in what, I think, it was intended to do - make babies relate to other babies and see their own world unravel before them. What the simple illustrations do for the adult is evoke the realization how very elementary things like holding a spoon or sliding a sock up the leg are actually huge successes in their petite innocent world!

The book was actually considered revolutionary, more so around the time it was published. Stumped? Here is the icing on the cake - the book shows babies of different races playing together and hugging each other! Gyo Fujikawa's book depicting ethnically diverse children coexisting happily, in a way, opened the door to many more multicultural pictures books. It was for this reason that I felt immensely pleased when I picked up this book, even though this issue was much beyond the cognizance of my infant daughter!

There are so many good books out there for toddlers, preschoolers and young adults but what can I read to my baby - BABIES by Gyo Fujikawa. Enjoy!

Just One More Book.....

To continue my previous post on Martin Luther King's Day, thought I should write about Just One More Books - a podcast about children's books that includes interviews with authors, discussions of their favorite children's books with children and parents, librarians etc.

Just One More Books is definitely relevant for visitors on Saffron Tree because some of their recent podcasts have focused on peace related discussions with children's book authors who focus on diversity and multi-culturalism related issues. Of course, Uma Krishnaswami's books come to mind. There's an interesting podcast interview with Uma Krishnaswami about her work, and her online bibliography of books which introduce children to the concepts of war, oppression, conflict, peace and peacemaking.

This week, in honour of Martin Luther King Day on Monday January 15, 2007, Just One More Books has podcast an interview with Amy Wachspress, author of The The Call To Shakabaz - a fantasy adventure in which children find creative solutions to resolve crises/conflicts. Here's a little description from the author Amy about the book - " The Call to Shakabaz is a children's fantasy adventure with all Black characters that demonstrates the fundamental principles of nonviolence as practiced by Dr. King and Gandhi, and is a rollicking good read to boot! I dare you to put it down."

Here's a little description that was emailed to Saffron Tree about Just One More Books - a very innovative and interesting podcast idea run by Andrea and Mark who are passionate about their very innovative and inspiring podcast idea on children's books they've enjoyed reading to their daughters:

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Just One More Book is a thrice-weekly podcast in which we take a few minutes out of our morning coffee ritual to discuss one of our many favourite children's books.

Through this podcast and its website, we are building a lively, interactive community linking children's book authors, illustrators, readers (parents and children) and publishers.

Episodes range in length from 5 to 12 minutes and can be played directly from our web page or downloaded to an ipod for listening on the go. Each episode is an informal discussion of one of our family's favourite children's books. We also feature interviews with authors, literacy related discussions or audio reviews submitted by our listeners.

This podcast is powered by passion. We have no advertisers or sponsers and there is no financial gain to be had. Our goal is to link children with great books and help create happy memories for children and the adults that read to them…and to have fun!

If you would like to share these conversations with others who are interested in connecting families and children with great children's books, please feel free to link to this site and to pass it along to parents and teachers<

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Two holidays - January 15th - Happy Birthday, Dr.King & Happy Pongal!

Happy Birthday, Dr.King!

It's Dr.Martin Luther King's birthday on Monday. Born on January 15, 1929, Dr.King, is one of the greatest political and social activists the world has ever known after Mahatma Gandhi. As a strong believer in Gandhi's philosophy of peaceful protests, Dr. King promoted non-violent means to achieve civil-rights reform. Dr.King was awarded the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts. His Birthday became a National Holiday by an act of Congress in 1983.

Happy Pongal!

It's also a long weekend in parts of India - particularly in the states of southern India, people celebrate Pongal/Sankranthi this Monday. Traditionally, Pongal is celebrated for three days in the state of Tamilnadu(which is where I am from). It's definitely a "Tamil Thanksgiving Holiday". Here's the thanksgiving rationale:

1)On the day of Pongal, tamilians prepare pongal, which is a rice-lentil dish and offer it to the Hindu-Sun God, Surya. It is a gesture symbolizing thanksgiving to the Sun in anticipation of a good harvest season and lots of prosperity.

2) It is also a holiday to thank farmers for their hardwork on the farms(Uzhavar Thirunaal). Sugarcane is the centerpiece of celebrations. People in villages and cities eat sugarcane, a sweet gift from nature!

3) The last day, which is Maatu Pongal is a festival of the cattle or a cattle carnival, which is thanksgiving to the cattle. Cattle owners wash their cattle, paint their horns, and decorate it with designs. Beads, bells, and flower garlands are tied around the cow/bull's necks. They are fed with pongal and taken on a parade around the neighborhood.

To end on a personal note, it was great to talk to my 4 yr old daughter about thw two holidays - Dr.King's birthday and Pongal. Gave a very short narrative about Dr.King's life, and that he was inspired by Gandhi,(whom she knows was a great man from India), and finally, we discussed the meaning of peace(my daughter's middle name is Ahimsa meaning peace/nonviolence).

I was looking for picture books that talk about Dr.King's life, and found a couple of good ones. I plan to get my little one the title - A Picture Book of Martin Luther King, Jr this week (find picture below. It will be a neat non-fiction addition- in fact, the first biography that we will be adding to her collection of picture books.

Caps for Sale

I have fond memories of reading this delightful folktale during my childhood. Titled, "Kulla Vyabaari" meaning, The Cap Seller, it was one of the stories in my 1st/2nd grade/std Tamil textbook. This is one story I recollect very well, and I loved it as a child. I was thrilled to find the same story for my older daughter in a picture book format titled "Caps for Sale."

Past reviews mentioned that this book was published first in the 1940s,and has sold over 2 million copies. It seemed like a classic tale that was universally told across many different cultures. So I decided to get hold of this book for my daughter, and in fact it was the first story I read to her that had a simple and clear plot when she was close to 3.

The author and illustrator, Esphyr Slobodkina has created many wonderful children's books in the 20th century. Caps for Sale was written before WWII. She has illustrated many books for Margaret Wise Brown back in the 30s and 40s.

Caps for Sale is a great story with a simple plot and has a clear structure - a beginning, middle and end. It tells the story of a peddler who sells caps by carrying the entire "inventory" piled on his head and carefully balancing all 16 of them plus his very own checked cap, and calls - "Caps! Caps for Sale! Fifty cents a cap! Peddler has to walk straight so as not to spill his hats.

One morning, our dear peddler couldn't sell any caps - not even a red cap. Feeling hungry and with no money for lunch, he decided to go for a walk in the country and fell asleep under a tree with the caps stacked up high on his head. When he woke all the caps were gone but one. Right above the tree he was sleeping under were monkeys sitting - one on each branch, and each one was wearing one of the peddler's new hats. Well, we all know how the "angry peddler" manages to get back his cap! Had to have a moral! Well, in this case, a slightly different one - Losing one's temper can lead to desirable solutions when used appropriately by both children and adults! :-)

To add some personal stories - I once tried to pique my daughter's brain by asking - Why didn't the monkeys take the peddler's checked cap? I let her think for a minute, and she answered "The monkeys didn't like the checked cap - they liked only colorful ones.." Good one, I thought. I then gave my reasoning to her, "Well, there were only 16 monkeys on the tree, and each monkey wanted just one cap. Had there been 17 monkeys, then our dear peddler's cap would have gotten stolen too, and he would have never gotten all his caps back.." Not sure if that made sense to her...But I am sure we will read this story several times in the coming years, and I can't wait for her to ask me - "Mom, didn't the monkeys know that the caps would fall when they copied what the peddler did?" And then I can tell her "Well, monkeys don't understand gravity!" :-)

Aside from the simplistic plot, there are other elements in the book that can be conceptually interesting for preschoolers...

1) Great for introducing counting - the 16 caps - 4 caps each in 4 different colors plus the peddler's very own checked cap!

2) Great for talking about colors - gray, brown, blue and red. Since the illustrations are vintage, they are not too catchy and not that bright. The use of lines in the drawings is interesting, and little ones can have fun looking for details in the images. It is interesting that the brown and the blue caps are a different shade in my copy of the book, and for a while I couldn't convince my daughter about those two colors of caps. She has a keen eye for colors, and argued with me that the brown wasn't exactly brown instead has shades of yellow, and the blue looked like gray in fact.

3) Simple, repetitive text helped my preschooler memorize the words. I have always enjoyed enacting this story by talking like "Babu Bhat" of Seinfeld fame(My miserable attempts at mimicry, and stand-up comedy for my family!!:-) ) -
Babu's voice works really well for - "The peddler looked to the right - No caps. He looked to the left - no caps. You Monkeys you! You Give me back my caps"...
Here's another imagination - The voice of Montgomery Burns (from The Simpsons) might work well too, if you want to imitate the angry peddler! And Burns' logic/moral would be - Never steal others' goods ye. Even if you do, don't copy acts that would lead to your downfall similar to the downfall of the caps that the monkeys stole! :-)


Try enacting the story with your little ones. It can be lot of fun!

Caps for Sale or The Capseller in any language can be an enjoyable story for your entire family. It is a timeless classic. A perfect 'excuse' to have this book even as an adult :-)

About Saffron Tree

Saffron: Exotic. Hand-picked. Priceless.

Tree: Tall. Perennial. Extensive.

Saffron Tree: Treasure-trove. Children's Books. Reviews.

A brainchild of Praba Ram, Saffron Tree collects and presents an eclectic mix of children's books primarily from India and the US, plus a host of others from around the world. It is our hope that this will enable children to connect with their cultural roots as well as help them understand and appreciate other cultures....

We hope the following set of FAQs provides more information about us . If you have any questions/comments, please don't hesitate to contact us at: saffrontree at gmail dot com.

1. You know saffron doesn't grow on trees, right? So, what's with the name Saffron Tree?
   
   Good question. But hey, let's just not take the meaning literally! Saffron Tree is a name born out of imagination. To us, books, especially wonderful children's books, are as precious as exotic saffron. With the hope that children all over the world can enjoy the goodness of books, we dream of a great big Saffron Tree, always in full bloom, under which we come together to share with the world the joys of reading.
2. How do you choose books to review here? Do publishers and authors send them to you?
   
   As parents passionate about reading to our kids, we typically handpick the books from local libraries, bookstores, book fairs. etc. to read to our children. Of course, not all the books we bring home click. We only review those books that truly resonate with our children.
   
   Children's books, especially ones with cross-cultural/multi-cultural flavors, happens to stir our passions. As a result, our reviews sometimes showcase our support for the fiercely independent small publishers from here in the U.S. and India. Occasionally we accept a copy or two from authors and illustrators who have worked on Indian/ South Asian themes and other multi-cultural genre. And, true to our belief, if the book resonates with us and our kids, we share it here.
3. Why are all the reviews rather raving? Have you not come across books you didn't like?
   
   At ST, we like to promote positivity :) As mentioned above, we share books that have clicked with our children, and our personal philosophy and values.
4. Why do you review children's books in particular? What do you hope to accomplish through this blog?
   
   Simple answer: Children's books bring out the inner child in us - the curiosity, the discovery, the unbridled wonder at the world around us - which we, as parents, manage to lose sight of in today's complex life.
   
   Reading children's books helps us take a step back and see the world through our children, making it an enriching experience for us that we've come to cherish. As all who are passionate about reading would agree, the benefits of exposing children to books from a very young age cannot be over-emphasized.
   
   And, we believe that blogging about the wonderful books, along with the delightful moments we experience while reading these books to our children, helps create a wider forum to discover and appreciate not just the books, but the joys of reading as well.
   
   As to what we hope to accomplish... nothing lofty, really, except to serve as a wonderful repository.
5. Who are the ST contributors? How can I contribute?
   
   Our contributors are an assorted group of ordinary moms and dad(s) who came to adopt ST when it was a fledgling, nurturing and growing with it over the past few years with such dedication and passion that seems extraordinary.
   
   Readership and comments are a great way to contribute to ST. As for adding new members, unfortunately we seem to be bursting at our seams right now. However, please feel free to get in touch with us to check the status. And thanks for stopping by. Hope you find our repository of books and our reviews of them useful. Please write to us with any questions/comments/thoughts.

About Saffron Tree

We hope that our recommendations and pointers to resources from the world of children's literature will help you make the right picks for you and your kids to enjoy together. We welcome your thoughts - email: saffrontree at gmail dot com or leave your comments on our blog space. Thank you!

The very first post on the inspiration for Saffrontree, posted by Praba Ram..http://www.saffrontree.org/2006/10/hi-all-welcome-to-my-blog.html