Summer Reading by Nita Sundararaju

Summer holidays are upon us, and as mothers, we are always looking for ways to keep our kids occupied and out of trouble, isn’t it? We have always heard mothers and fathers) complaining that children spend more time on a screen than they do with books. Reading is a habit we all feel is something we want to inculcate in our children. So why don’t we use these holidays to encourage our children to read?

Children, nowadays, don’t want to read fairy tales. They want more. They want something they can relate to. So we started doing some research, to get ideas about what they would like. We felt that curating a list of books that you can easily find would make it easier for you mothers to go out and get them so here we are with an age-group-wise list. And mind you, this is a list of books written by Indian authors, since they do such a fabulous job, but don’t get enough credit and aren’t as talked about as international authors.

Of course, these aren’t the only books in the market, and we encourage you to do some more research based on your child’s interests. Encourage them to read, not only because it is a good habit, but because it also helps them to improve their vocabulary and imagination, and introduces them to various different ideas and perspectives. In short, it helps them grow.

10 Picture Books by Indian Authors (0-6 years)

 

  1. Ammachi’s Amazing Machines by author Rajiv Eipe (Storyweaver)
  2. Maharani The Cow by author Christy Shoba Sudhir (Tulika)
  3. My Mother’s Sari by author Sandhya Rao (Tulika)
  4. A Book For Puchku by author Deepanjana Paul (Storyweaver)
  5. Gajapati Kulapati (series) by author Ashok Rajagopalan (Tulika)
  6. Padma Goes to Space by author Shwetha Prakash (Tulika)
  7. Dear Left Sock and Other Letters by author Khushnaz Lala (Harper Kids)
  8. Tara’s Elephant by author C G Salamander (Ms.Moochie Books)
  9. What’s Neema Eating Today by author Bijal Vachharajani (Storyweaver)
  10. An Elephant in my Backyard  author Shobha Vishwanath (Karadi Tales)

10 Books For Young Readers by Indian Authors (6 – 9 years)

  1. Gone Grandmother by author Chatura Rao (Tulika)
  2. The Story of Babur by author Parvati Sharma (Co-published: Puffin and Goodearth)
  3. The Tree Boy by author Srividhya Venkat, Nayantara Surendranath (Pickle Yolk Books)
  4. Dinosaur-Long-As-127-Kids by author Geeta Dharmarajan (Katha)
  5. Bookasura by author Arundhati Venkatesh (Scholastic)
  6. Timmi in Tangles by author Shals Mahajan (Duckbill)
  7. I Will Save My Land by author Rinchin (Tulika)
  8. The Mystery of the Secret Hair Oil Formula by author Asha Nehemiah (Scholastic)
  9. Brown Like Dosas, Samosas and Sticky Chikki by author Rebecca Manari (FunOkPlease)
  10. No Touch by author K Krishna (Scholastic)

10 Books For Under-12 Readers by Indian Authors (9-12 years)

  1. Aru Shah and the End of Time by author Roshani Chokshi (Rick Riordan Presents)
  2. Razia and the Pesky Presents by author Natasha Sharma (Duckbill)
  3. Tiger Boy by author Mitali Perkins (Duckbill)
  4. Simply Nanju by author Zainab Sulaiman (Duckbill)
  5. Ninja Nani and the Bumbling Burglars by author Lavanya Karthik (Duckbill)
  6. Moongphali by author Neha Singh and Mukesh Chhabra(Rupa Publications)
  7. The Rulebreakers’ Club: The Ghost Who Wasn’t There by author Sowmya Rajendran (Penguin)
  8. The Boys Who Fought by author Devdutt Pattanaik (Penguin)
  9. Your Turn Now by author Lubaina Bandukwala (FunOkPlease)
  10. Our Nana Was a Nutcase by author Ranjit Lal (Rupa Publications India/Red Turtle)

We’re sure the children will spend hours reading these books by Indian authors.

It would be unfair to not mention some international book series that every individual, irrespective of age, should read and own because they are just amazing.

International Series Every Child Loves Reading

  1. Harry Potter Series
  2. Secret Seven, Famous Five Series
  3. Diary of a Wimpy Kid
  4. Piggie Series
  5. Geronimo Stilton
  6. The Chronicles of Narnia
  7. Percy Jackson Series
  8. A Series of Unfortunate Events
  9. Goosebumps
  10. Nancy Drew Series

We would like to put in a disclaimer here – Children will always do what you do, not what you ask them to do. So if you want them to read, show them it can be fun – spend some time reading yourself! It is a good habit for adults too, you know!