Visit a bookstore or log on to any of the retail sites that sell books and you are flooded with new titles. Some you have heard about, and some you may never have. You are so confused with the choices that you can’t decide what you want to buy. It’s like walking into a cave full of treasure and you are given five minutes to make your choice.
Here’s a brief glimpse of some new titles that you might want to read.
To begin with let’s once again make our acquaintance with the Wimpy Kid. The latest, the 11 in the series promises to be as good and entertaining as the previous ones. The diaries are a realistic, sarcastic yet, humorous account of Greg Heffley and his struggles to fit into school.
The latest Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Double Down is all set for release in November 2016.
If you feel you cannot relate to Wimpy Kid, then you need to meet Apoorva. Her first is Apoorva’s Fat Diary. Apoorva is 12 and she is forced to keep a diary by her mother. She hates writing, but strikes a deal saying she would record her 12 best meals over the next few months. But, as she begins to write, she finds she has to put the meal in context and hence begins to chronicle all that is happening around her and the people she is meeting. Following that is Meanie.com and Dear Aunty . The latest in the series is Laugh Out Loud –Apoorva.
After the success of her novel Because of Winn-Dixie, Kate DiCamillo’s new novel Raymie Nightingale comes with a lot of expectation, and it does not disappoint. Because of Winn-Dixie
Raymie Nightingale , is set in Florida town. Two days after her father has abandoned the family, 10-year-old Raymie thinks of a plan to get him back home. She decides to enter and win the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition. But before she gets it, she will have to do good deeds and learn to twirl a baton. At baton lesson, she meets Lousiniana and Beverly. A friendship begins to form.
Leaving Raymie behind, meet Mara. He has unique powers. This story is inspired by a Tangkhul Naga folktale Mara and the Clay Cows and is written by Parismita Singh. It tells the story of Mara as he follows the trail of the holder of a thousand spells — Chief Magician.
Forests, mazes and the past
If you are looking for some light reading check out The Bear and the Piano by David Lichfield. Delightful and moving, this illustrated story can be read time and time again. A little bear, walking in the forest, stumbles on something strange. He has never seen anything like it before. He touches it and strange notes emanate from it. He runs away frightened. But he is drawn to it. So, he returns…again and again until he teaches himself to play the strange instrument. A father and son, enjoying a picnic in the forest are astounded by the beautiful strains of music in the woods. They follow the music which ultimately leads them to the bear. They take the bear along with them to New York. What happens next, has to be read to be experienced.
In another forest faraway, Tara prepares for a boring summer. Ambushed by Nayanika Mahtani tells the story of geeky Tara in a tiger reserve in the Himalayan foothills. She is pleasantly surprised. Poachers, a tigress, cubs and a mysterious new friend all add together to make it one memorable summer!
Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman features 12-year-old Emily moving to San Francisco with her family. She is excited with this move, because San Francisco is the home of her literary idol – Garrison Griswold. He created the online sensation Book Scavenger, a game where books are hidden all over the country and clues to find them are revealed through puzzles.
But, to her dismay, Emily learns that Griswold has been attacked and is in a coma, and no one knows anything about the epic new game he had been poised to launch. Then Emily and her new friend James discover an odd book, which they think is from Griswold and leads to a valuable prize. There are others on the hunt for this book, and Emily and James must find it soon.
There are puzzles, ciphers, and codes, in addition to detective work to solve, so there never is a dull moment.
Time for some play. Confidantes, study mates and star footballers in a mixed team, the girls are inseparable. Champa is the daughter of Oli’s domestic help. Half the Field is Mine by Swati Sengupta is once again a coming of age story.
On the threshold of adolescence, the boys decide that girls cannot play in their team anymore. But, the girls are determined to continue playing. How will they go about it?
How about some history. Don’t groan… this book is not as dry as your text books. In fact, it brings alive the past and there are anecdotes you would never find in your book. Razia and the Pesky Presents by Natasha Sharma takes you back in time – 1236 to 1240 CE, when Razia Sultan ruled Dihli.
Razia is enraged to find herself the recipient of some really ‘girly’ presents — a palanquin for a delicate woman, girly clothes, a really bad poem and notes challenging her right to rule because she is a woman. It’s a funny take on gender equality and women’s rights. Though this is a work of fiction, and there are no documents to confirm the pesky presents, there are many historical facts in the story, that will make your lesson easier to remember.
New on the Rack
Words to Live by: Deepa Agarwal
Publisher: Hachette
Price: Rs. 399
Deepa Agarwal has selected and put together this collection of highly regarded non-fiction writing by Indian writers for young readers. This anthology for children is rich, colourful and lively. It covers a variety of topics ranging from family to politics, education to wildlife, history to music, travel to management fundamentals, astronomy to patriotism.
