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Harry Potter, Enid Blyton, Tintin...
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Come summer holidays, and kids pick up storybooks. But, are the city libraries offering them the right choice? SMITHA SADANANDAN finds out...
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Graphics: C. R. Sasikumar
The world of children, till recently, was full of story sessions and colourful books comprising tales of valiant kings, beautiful princess, and evil magicians.
Asterix, Tintin, Jataka tales and Panchatantra, Tinkle, Amar Chitra Katha, and books by Enid Blyton and P. G. Wodehouse formed the staple dietof little readers who devoured them enthusiastically, during languorous holidays.
But now Harry Potter and his ilk -- in print, on CDs and on big screen -- have invaded the world once dominated by traditional Indian tales.
"Kids are more into horror tales, hi-tech adventure stories and tattoos. I, very often, buy storybooks for my grandson because they are always an asset," says Maduri Nair, grandmother of six-year -old Ajay Surya.
"My daughter (a teacher) urges her students to read books," says Madhuri. She feels teachers and family members ought to inculcate the reading habit in children, right from the pre-school age.
Picture books are the best bet for pre-schoolers. Bookshops and libraries in the city have a wide range of such books, both Indian and foreign. Surprisingly though, some of the brat pack seems content to browse through abridged and `re-told' versions of biographies and classics.
"I read Mohammed Ali's biography and learned an important lesson - `never to lose heart and try until one succeeds," says Firoz Berly, a fifth class student, who has membership at the British Council Library, Public library and the Eloor lending library.
When it comes to books, most parents tend to think twice: to buy or not to buy. Says a bookshop owner, "Very often, parents who crib about the `high' price of a book are seen spending a few hundred rupees over ice cream and electronic toys."
With books being expensive and kids preferring colourful illustrations, glossy pages and exotic fairy tales and stories, parents cannot be blamed entirely for mulling over whether to indulge the child with books or refrain from doing so. "But, unlike Indian books, they cost a lot," laments Gracy Ninan, peering on to the price label on one such book. Foreign books are the most sought-after by toddlers and youngsters.
Attractive cover designs are a deciding factor for children's books. Indian classics do not seem to hold as much appeal as foreign books do. "For the past couple of weeks, children have been scourging bookshops for the latest Harry Potter, which will hit the stands only in June. It has become sort of an addiction," points out N. E. Sudheer of Modern Books. The `Potter' mania is fast catching on...
School goers Kichu Thomas, Aditya Narasimhan and Vijay Sreekumar who frequent the British Council Library (BCL) are die-hard fans of `Harry'. "Parents would like to have their child spend more time on text books rather than story books," Sudheer adds.
Hovever, there are many parents who, like Dr. George Mathew, take their child whenever they go to a library.
Dr. Mathew takes his six-year old daughter, Malini, along to the library. "My daughter loves fairy tales. We read out stories to her. We have a good collection of books at home too," he says.
During most evenings children can be seen lugging home their choicest books - from the latest adventure stories to good old Asterix and Archies- from the Eloor Lending Library, another favourite haunt of little `book lovers'.
"How many libraries with children's books have adequate facilities for them to sit there and read for a few hours?" enquires Archana Arun. Says she, "In the U.K., libraries hold story sessions, puppet shows, and reading sessions. It did a lot of good for my son, but there is no such concept here."
Unlessparents encourage children, they are unlikely to read anything other than what the school curriculum demands.
Many parents, say librarians, have a tendency to pick up books that "they think the child must read" and collate assignment references for their children. "This," teachers reiterate, "is bad" and would only serve to make the child "over-dependent". The children's section of the BCL was closed down following a "policy decision" by the authorities in the U.K.
T. K. Subramoni, librarian, BCL, says, "We're planning to add more books to our collection. The war in Iraq caused a lot of unforeseen problems. False reports that appeared in the media, regarding the temporary closure of BCL, affected our services considerably.
"Requests for a children's section kept pouring in. And the children's section was started two years ago. The children do not have to pay reading fee, as is the case with most other libraries in the city."
A pleasing décor, computers and colourful soft toys enliven the room. "A monthly session on `know your library' is conducted for new members. Children chat on the computers, but have, of late, been spending too much time on it. We have decided to monitor them. ," adds Subramoni.
The State Public Library has a fairly goodcollection of children's books. However, owing to lack of adequate facility and shortage of staff, the children's section is in a sorry state.
Says a parent who frequents this library with her children, "It has many books but most of the `in-demand' ones are unavailable."
And by the time books `in-demand' make an appearance; there is hardly any child around who wants to read them.
The deputy librarian of the State Public Library cites the lack of Government funds, absence of latest children's books and requisite infrastructure, as reasons that affect the library's service. Financial crunch and the absence of sponsorship have taken its toll on the upcoming children's library, the construction of which began way back in 1996.
It is a three-storeyed building adjacent to the Public Library. "It will have modern facilities such as an audio-video section, multimedia section and an auditorium. Apart from the membership fee, we do not charge our readers anything," says Devadathan.
An Internet browsing centre is currently under way at the old building.
"Children often, tear away pages, especially of encyclopaedias and reference books; some even steal books. In such cases, it is not possible to replace an entire volume of these books. This being an open access system (the children select their books by themselves), we cannot keep an eye on each kid," says Sushama, deputy librarian, the State Public Library. March to May is the time when children come in droves to libraries.
This is the time when children literally throw away their textbooks to grab storybooks and comics. And with the summer holidays now about to give way to homework, tuitions, coaching classes and project works, how many parents and teachers would allow the children to continue with reading? And more importantly, how many children would find the time to do so, given an ever increasing load of homework and test papers?
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
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Thiruvananthapuram
Visakhapatnam
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