READING BETWEEN THE LINES

In its 50th year, the annual International Children’s Book Fair in Bologna, which is just around the horizon (March 25-28), will once again open its doors to children’s books from all over the world. This year marks the fair’s 50th anniversary. At this year’s book fair, there are 1200 exhibitors registered to participate from 66 different countries. These exhibitors will showcase their books, which include picture books, illustrated books, activity books, chapter books, young adult novels, educational books, encyclopedias, graphic novels, e-books, apps, and young adult novels. And the list is only going to become longer as technology develops more efficient methods to communicate via the written word. While the market for literature aimed at young adults is continuing to expand in India, albeit at a more measured pace, the market for children’s tale books has, for some reason, remained more difficult to penetrate. The role that the picture book plays in the life of a kid is not just important but looks virtually obligatory in many parts of the globe, particularly in western parts of the world. In the history of India, both as a country and a culture, picture books have never had a significant place. Our formative years were filled with activities such as playing games, going to festivals, eating good food, singing and dancing, but being read to was never a regular part of our upbringing. This may be due, in part, to the quantity of tales, whether genuine or imagined, that were present in each home and were passed down through the generations in the form of oral tradition. Instead of being told for the sake of pleasure or education, tales were often given to very young children so that the adults could divert them long enough to encourage them to eat or go to sleep. After the youngster began attending school, she was finally exposed to literature for the first time. The child’s textbook was where she first encountered printed tales, and they were the ones she read. As a result of this, there has never been much of a demand in the market for books that have elaborate artwork or narratives in which the visuals are more important than the text. The use of art or drawings on a page served to break up the otherwise monotonous presentation of the content. If the arts were ignored, then literature was not given any special consideration either. The majority of the stories that were told to children were retellings of folktales or were taken from the Panchatantra or the Jataka. Where is the acknowledgement of this? Although Indian literature in English has made rapid strides in recent years, both domestically and internationally, it does not seem that this skill has trickled down to the level of children’s writing. The authoring and illustrating of children’s books are not recognized in any way, shape, or form with any kind of prize, and the only honor given out for children’s books is the crossword book award, which manages to include everything from picture books to novels for teenagers. The child’s demand for storytelling has to be supplied with well illustrated books in light of the changing social factors, with families decreasing and even grandparents hurrying to work. This is because of the changing social conditions. During the last 15 years, we’ve seen a few publishers respond to this need by producing picture books that are both gorgeously drawn and thoughtfully constructed. karadi stories, tara books, tinkling digest, and tulika publishers have all made daring and innovative entries into this sector of the publishing industry. while tara has even received the famous bologna ragazzi prize, in addition to numerous others, for their stunning screen-printed art and handmade books, karadi stories has brought its new range of picture books to the worldwide market over the course of the last several years. On the white raven’s catalogue of superb books, you’ll find a good number of books containing karadi tales, kids story books, and hindi panchatantra stories. It is impossible to overstate the significance of having a picture book in the development of a young kid in today’s society. It is necessary for us to provide our children with books since there is not a lively narrative environment where they live. Reading words is critical, but being able to read visuals is just as crucial. The skill of storytelling may be passed down through generations via the pages of a well-crafted book. It imparts knowledge without being overly preachy, and it has the wonderful characteristic of narrating a distinct tale to the reader each time the book is read. Picture books are the single most effective tool for instilling a sense of appreciation for beauty and craftsmanship in a young kid. In point of fact, there is no other method that is superior than this one for educating an adult. Joyce Wan, who is both a novelist and an artist, believes that picture books have the ability to “grab your heart and reshape your spirit.”

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