Each January, when I look through my blog posts and my shelf on Goodreads, I realise how much I’ve read! As always, many of these books weren’t published in 2021; I just read them in 2021.
Through the course of the year, I read a range of picture books from wordless ones (which I love) to long, beautiful stories that are more suited to older readers. I’ve tried to arrange them on the basis of reading level, but with 18 books on the list, I kept shuffling the order because children and their reading levels are so different!
My Street
My Street, written by Sadaf Siddique and illustrated by Habib Ali, is a lovely wordless picture book that I read nearly a year ago now. It’s such a treat!
It’s a perfectly ordinary day in a familiar neighbourhood – but even an ordinary day is full of colour and adventure.
I ‘read’ with round eyes until I reached the end. What more could I ask for from a children’s story?
One Ted Falls Out of Bed
A midnight escapade that teaches us numbers – this one is a delightful read, bringing adventure and learning together in ways that only masters like Julia Donaldson can achieve!
My No, No, No Day
All of us have grumpy, tantrummy days, days when we just don’t feel like doing anything. Everything goes wrong and even things we liked earlier are no longer fun.
My No, No, No Day by Rebecca Patterson is about one such day, a day when things go wrong because you want to be angry and irritable and upset with the world. I love the patience in this story and the sense that even after the worst of days, things can get back to normal and you can be happy again!
(This book is ridiculously expensive in India, so I haven’t shared a purchase link! I read it at a library.)
Bear Snores On
I adore books in rhyme, especially ones with lots of repetition, and Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman is lovely. I also love books about unlikely friendships, so this one is a win on that front too.
On a wintry evening, several animals discover the bear’s lair. Together, they light a little campfire and have a party as the bear snores on. But when the bear wakes up … oh, I chuckled with delight!
Tiger's Delicious Treats
What a fun, fun book about making friends against all odds! Tiger loves baking, but the other animals in the forest are too scared of him to go and buy what he bakes. What can Tiger do? I love the simple, sweet story, and the end made me chuckle!
Nanammal and Kamalathal
Who would have thought I’d enjoy a series of books about modes of transport? But I loved this trilogy written by Menaka Raman and illustrated by Sushant Ahire. I’ve always believed that children do not need to be at the centre of children’s books. Sure, child protagonists are great, but children don’t always want to read only about children, and Nanammal and Kamalathal are perfect examples of that.
In Nanammal and Kamalathal Travel by Road, the two friends have a train to catch. What could possibly go wrong? Birdwatching on the backwaters could never be as full of adventure as it is with Nanammal and Kamalathal when they travel by sea, and finally, isn’t the picture of two women in a hot air balloon full of promise? All three books made me chuckle and read on!
Goplu’s Train Ride
Another book about an unlikely friendship!
Goplu’s Train Ride, written by Timira Gupta and illustrated by Parmita Mukherjee, explores that glorious moment of friendship that is full of possibility and yet, complete in itself. I love it. Can you make a friend through the bars of a local train? How do you make a friend without exchanging a word?
On Mondays I Want to Hide
Doesn’t the title just draw you into the book?
I’m not one who wants to hide on Mondays, but I love the book! Growing up, I imagined each day of the week as a certain colour. Days I didn’t like were dark, dark grey bordering on black, and days I loved were full of possibility and light. If I’d imagined people instead, this book would have been about me!
The Night Monster
Sibling bonds are precious, and that’s one of the things that makes The Night Monster special. I also love epistolary novels, and an epistolary picture book …? Lovely!
The Night Monster, written by Sushree Mishra and illustrated by Sanket Pethkar, is a heart-warming story about little Avi, who is terrified of the howling, hooting monster that creeps in after dark. Drawing the monster does not help. Avi’s sister suggests that he should write a letter to the monster. Wonder of wonders, the monster writes back, and gradually, Avi’s fear begins to disappear.
The Birthday Menu
Lockdowns, fear and the need to stay at home defined the last year. So many children I meet during my book clubs don’t clearly remember a world before lockdown.
It’s Kanchi’s birthday and she can’t go out. That’s enough to make anyone upset. But her neighbours know just what to do to make her birthday special!
The Birthday Menu, written by Meenu Thomas and illustrated by Akanksha Mittra, shines a light on one of the the big, little things that matter to children even through a pandemic.
Once Upon an Alphabet
Isn’t it strange that an alphabet book should feature so low down on a list of books for young readers? That’s because Once Upon an Alphabet by Oliver Jeffers is unlike your usual alphabet book – it’s a series of short stories, one for each letter. A zany, brilliant book, each page took my breath away. This one is a book for keeps!
You Won't Believe Me
This one is probably one of my absolute favourites, even on a list of favourites! You Won’t Believe Me, written by Jairaj Singh and illustrated by Bhargavi Rudraraju, is such a powerful book! It begins harmlessly – with the narrator confessing he likes school. Slowly the story takes us into a dark place before, ultimately, showing us the light again. I love it!
The Girl Who Loved to Sing
The Girl Who Loved to Sing won the Atta Galatta-Bangalore Literature Festival Book Prize 2021 for the best children’s picture book, much to my delight! I loved the story, the vivid illustrations, and the powerful use of repetition. Very few works of nonfiction impact me the way this book by Lavanya Karthik did. The story of a girl who sings as an act of rebellion …! It’s a book that gives me more each time I read it.
One Day Elsewhere
Although I read the entire One Day Elsewhere series, A Giant Leap and A Cello on the Wall stood out to me. What makes the entire series special is the child’s perspective. How do huge events in history affect children? Does the step that Neil Armstrong take really make a difference to June, who is waiting for an equally momentous event in her own life? Is it even possible for the wall that separates east and west Germany to fall? I love these stories – simple, nuanced and powerful.
White Socks Only
I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve used White Socks Only in class. When a young girl sees a sign at a fountain that says ‘WHITES ONLY’, of course she knows what it means. It means she can’t wear her shiny, black, patent leather shoes if she wants to drink from the fountain. So she takes them off and begins to drink. Why, then, does the red-faced white man become so angry? I never tire of reading this story!
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