Top Indian Picture Books for Children
There is so much to love about Picture books. They have gorgeous illustrations, minimal texts, and a lot of love weaved for your precious child. As I started my journey as a picture book lover, I totally gravitated toward foreign publishers. I still do that, but this year, I pledge to read and promote excellent picture books from Indian publishers, by Indian authors and primarily set in India. There has been a much-awaited and well-deserved boom in the picture books publishing industry and who is to gain, why? our precious kids and their amazing parents, of course!
Here are my favorite publishing houses for
Top Indian Picture Books for Children
Tulika Books
By winning the prestigious ‘Publisher of the year‘ award for 2014 and Publishing Next Award for Publisher of the Year, 2014, Tulika Books is one of my favorite publishers for amazing picture books in English and regional languages. They also have various bilinguals which is a boon for the parents struggling in the multi-language family (like ours). Some of our favorite titles from Tulika are shown below. There are MANY actually.
They also have titles that are CBSE/NCERT approved! I am sure you will find some great titles for your little ones!
m BooksMuch like Tulika Books, Pratham Books publishes economical yet engaging picture books for your young reader! Even though I only have 1 book from their collection, the below books (except for the India boo, which we own) are on my wishlist. Their initiative ‘A Book In Every Child’s Hand’ is commendable and something we all can and should support! I do, will you? Apart from being very affordable, they also house books on diverse topics. We, the Children of India by Leila Seth would be an awesome read for this Republic Day, an apt read for the 8+ crowd on the preamble, constitution – this is a gem, not to be missed.
Pratham has introduced story cards at as low as Rs. 4! Is that not something to snag, right away! i am getting my set, are you?
There is so much to love about books from Tara. The gorgeous illustrations, mostly celebrating Indian folk art, diverse genres and in their own words ‘Tara Books is an independent publisher of picture books for adults and children, yep they have picture books for adults and they are gorgeous ones, I assure you. Captain Coconuts aimed at the 8+ crowd was a huge hit with my friend’s son who is just 6! Their collection is worth checking out and one of these days I will be getting an art piece for my walls, they are gorgeous.
s In their own words: Katha’s Theory of Change
Katha has been helping children grow up to be India’s reader-leaders. The breadth and depth of our work is to enhance the joy of reading and the love of books.
Through cooperative action and activism, we bring together parents, teachers, and everyone concerned about children’s lack of interest in reading. Katha’s various reading initiatives bring the flavors and colors of India alive to children across the socio-economic, linguistic, and cultural divides.
Over the last 22 years, Katha’s two wings of imagination have grown immensely while bringing the joy of reading to children and adults.
So, combining the love for books, and book publishing with taking initiatives towards promoting reading and education, Katha is doing a wonderful job in this field along with Pratham books! I feel inspired to make a difference in my community, don’t you?
My absolute favorite and our very first book of poems came from Katha, called Clouds and Waves, and is written by Rabindranath Tagore! My son who doesn’t enjoy much poetry did like this one and with regular retelling has become fond of this little book!
Another one of our favorite titles from Katha has to be this little gem from Geeta Dharamrajan – Dinosaur-Long-AS-127-kids! I think this one Dino book that I recommend a whole lot! It is fun, quirky, and does give your little one a small lesson on numbers and simple addition.. and there is a Rakshasa thrown in for good measure!
Children’s Book Trust
One of the oldest publishing houses, it is easy to bypass books from CBT, but over the years they have published some gems, and their rates are so low, that you will never hesitate to get their titles. The Toy Horse, a very well acclaimed and heart-touching title from CBT is a personal favorite!
If you are in Delhi, you should not miss Dr. B.C. Roy Children’s Reading Room and Library, and of course the Delhi Book Fair coming up in February!
There are more Publishing Houses that I have read & enjoyed .. maybe I will do a part 2 of my favorites.
Amma’s Tales
Anjana Publishing
Hachette
Unisun
Young Zubaan
This definitely is not an exhaustive Top Indian Picture Books for Children list, but a list that I have personally tried out. If I have missed any Children’s Picture Book publisher, do share – I am eager to find more! And I hope you find some awesome reads from all the above publishing houses! Which one is your favorite Children’s Picture Book?
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These picture books look wonderful. I have tried using few picture books myself and I just love it. There is so much to learn from these picture ebooks. If used properly, these picture books can certainly turn any children into artist. Definitely must have for concerned parents.
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My youngest child loves the picture books. I have wonderful moments with him and his books. Thanks a lot for this post and the recommendations.