The Tulika – Padme Collection of Books
Available at a 10% Discount
We have partnered with Tulika Publishers, who have curated a collection of books on adoption, relationships, empathy, acceptance, love, family bonding and hope.
These books are great for parents to introduce topics like disclosure, acceptance and inclusivity.
Padme users also get a discount of 10% on the books when you order from the Tulika website. Just use the ‘Shop Now’ button next to the book to buy.
Happy reading.
The Lonely King And Queen
Author: Deepa Balsavar Illustrator: Deepa Balsavar
A lonely king and queen hear a voice calling out to them and getting louder by the minute. A one-of-a-kind bedtime story which handles the issue of adoption with sensitivity.
Price: Rs.135 Shop Now
The Boy With Two Grandfathers
Author: Mini Shrinivasan Illustrator: Anupama S. Iyer
Not everyone has two grandfathers quite like Amol’s – distinctly different, interested in everything and afraid of nothing. And when the going gets tough, Amol couldn’t ask for a tougher twosome. A bittersweet novel of loss for pre-teens, with effortless humour, restraint and compelling storytelling from a Bal Sahitya Puraskar winning writer.
Winner: 2018: The Hindu Young World-Goodbooks Award – Best Book – Fiction
Price: Rs.195 Shop Now
Soda And Bonda
Author: Niveditha Subramaniam Illustrator: Niveditha Subramaniam
Soda is a dog who feels like a dog. Bonda is a cat who feels like a… dog!
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
Salim Mamoo and Me (6+)
Author: Zai Whitaker Illustrator: Prabha Mallya
Zai’s uncle is the famous ‘birdman of India’ Salim Ali, everyone in her family is a birding expert, and she herself can’t so much as identify the pipit sitting right under her nose. In this delightful portrait of childhood, Zai Whitaker recounts her early birding woes and how she winged it. Prabha Mallya’s pictures pick up the humour, and are an arresting collage of a bird-filled Bombay of the past, and a troubled little girl with a ‘superstar’ uncle!
Price: Rs.165 Shop Now
Dungi dance (3+)
Author: Bhavna Jain Bhuta Illustrator: Kavita Singh Kale
Dhum Dhum Dhum… dhup dhup dhup… Dungi dances to a dhinchak beat in this foot-tapping story that will make young readers move and groove, clap and tap! Big sheep, small sheep, bored sheep, happy sheep… eyecatching visuals bring to life the dance and drama in a woolly world.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
The Jungle Storytelling Festival (3+)
Author: Janaki Sabesh Illustrator: Debosmita Mazumdar
In a jungle far far away, the animals are getting ready for the storytelling festival. Lion, Monkey and Tortoise delight the audience with well-known stories from their family lore. “C-c-can I tell a story too?” asks Ostroo the ostrich. Others make fun of him because he stammers – but where there is a story, there’s always a way! From a seasoned storyteller comes this sensitive story with many stories within it, which inspires us to overcome our fears. Soft pastels and colour pencils create warm pictures of a world in which encouragement comes from unexpected friends.
Price: Rs.195 Shop Now
Rooster Raga (3+)
Author: Natasha Sharma Illustrator: Priya Kuriyan
Do roosters sing ragas? This one does but like all true artistes discovers it after a lot of struggle! Every time he opens his mouth he has a new tune but not the kukaroo-kuroo of the other roosters. His friends skip and stretch, stamp and roll and try to teach him. Try as he might our rooster kuka-moooooos, kuka-heeen haaans, kuka-miaooows but can’t kukaroo-kuroo. This cheery, foot-tapping story invites big and little readers to move and sing, clap and tap along with Priya Kuriyan’s expressive characters.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
Minu and Her Hair (3+)
Author: Gayathri Bashi Illustrator: Gayathri Bashi
A bird’s nest? A cow with two horns? No, it’s Minu’s hair and she does NOT like it. Her mother, her father, her grandmother try hard to tame it. But her grandfather is unconcerned… The illustrations of this charming story give Minu’s hair a truly wild, tactile feel as it spills exuberantly through the pages
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
My Mother’s Sari (3+)
Author: Sandhya Rao Illustrator: Nina Sabnani
The sari Mother wears everyday is sometimes a train, sometimes a river, or a swing, or a hiding place . . . Children have a way of seeing things differently! The pictures too break away from conventional depictions of both sari and children, combining photographs and acrylic in dramatic, original ways. The spare text weaves and winds between this visual interplay of children, colours and textures, to create the mood-filled world of My Mother’s Sari. The US edition of the book has been selected for Outstanding International Books for 2007, a cooperative project of the United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) and the Children’s Book Council, USA.
Price: Rs.150 Shop Now
The Pleasant Rakshasa (3+)
Author: Sowmya Rajendran Illustrator: Niveditha Subramaniam
Karimuga is a rakshasa, a pleasant rakshasa. He is a beautiful rakshasa too. But that makes all other rakshasas jealous of him. Karimuga can’t bear to see them unhappy… Sowmya Rajendran inverts our ideas about beauty, happiness and rakshasas with humour and a light touch. Niveditha’s quirky pictures have little and big rakshasas romp through the pages, in pinks and purples, blues and greens, adding to the fun.
Price: Rs.150 Shop Now
Unhappy Moon (5+)
Author: Saras Illustrator: Proiti Roy
When Sun was out people did things, but when Moon appeared all they did was sleep! Moon isn’t happy – she too wants to be noticed. So starting from where the three seas meet at the tip of India, she goes to the mountains at the very top, trying to ruffle up waters to announce her presence. But nothing works. She then follows the advice of her ocean friends and works at what she is good at. She shines and shimmers, waxes and wanes… and soon people are singing songs and writing poems about her! Proiti Roy’s luminous illustrations evoke the moon’s many magical moods, and the changing landscape as it travels across the country.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
Clumsy! (5+)
Author: Ken Spillman Illustrator: Manjari Chakravarti
She spills, drops, breaks and trips on things. She is called Clumsy, Slowcoach, Careless, Sloppy, Messy, Butterfingers words that scare away all other words. But in her head, the words become stories and the stories become pictures. One day her grandmother gives her a box of paints – and with brush in hand she sweeps herself away from the names people call her! Vivid watercolours lift the little girl from her everyday milieu into a swirl of images and hues.
Price: Rs.150 Shop Now
Ari (5+)
Author: Vaishali Shroff Illustrator: Kavita Singh Kale
When the teacher announces that the class will stage The Lion and the Mouse, Ari is thrilled. He knows he’ll make a wonderful lion – even his name means ‘lion’! But shy little Ari is neither noticed nor chosen. He goes home disappointed, but suddenly in his room a roaring, growling, prowling creature comes to life… and a small, squeaky one too! The flat illustrative style with its strong kitschy palette gets away from usual depictions of the ‘soft, sensitive’ child, and captures the energy and fun of play-acting.
Price: Rs.150 Shop Now
Mukand and Riaz (5+)
Author: Nina Sabnani Illustrator: Nina Sabnani
The story is set against the background of the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947. But friendship between children knows no barbed wire fencing: all children play games, enjoy ice-cream and feel the loss of friends. Based on the memories of her father, animator Nina Sabnani made this film for the Big Small People Project, Israel, using the art of women’s appliqué work, common to both Sindh in Pakistan and Gujarat in India, to provide a rich and textured visual experience. The film won a certificate of merit from the Tokyo Broadcasting System, Japan. Mukand and Riaz is essentially about every child’s right to friendship and a home. Through shared memories, shared craft and shared histories, it offers deeply moving layers of meaning with which to identify and from which to draw strength.
Price: Rs.150 Shop Now
Nabiya (6+)
Author: Chatura Rao Illustrator: Ruchi Mhasane
It is hard not to notice Nabiya in Savita Teacher’s English story classes. She listens so hard that she hardly blinks! Slowly, she begins to explore stories, delight in their words, pictures and funny moments. This sensitively told story about a spirited young girl, who likes football as much as she likes storybooks, is based on the author’s own experience. Using a collage of colours, textures and drawings, the illustrations evoke Nabiya’s everyday world and her journey into the world of words.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
Snoring Shanmugam (3+)
Author: Radhika Chadha Illustrator: Priya Kuriyan
The animals from the popular I’m So Sleepy are back! Shanmugam the lion is supposed to be the king of the jungle but all he does is sleep. Worse, he snores. Then one day, another lion enters the jungle. He is lean and mean — he is Gabbar Singh. The other animals are frightened, but how can they get the lazy Shanmugam to awake to their defence? Bahadur the little elephant has a brilliant idea . . .
Price: Rs.135 Shop Now
Ismat’s Eid (5+)
Author: Fawzia Gilani-Williams Illustrator: Proiti Roy
Ismat’s Eid is a crisp adaptation of a delightful Turkish tale. Ismat the shoemaker is a happy, contented sort and on the occasion of Eid, decides to buy his family special gifts. He is persuaded by the shopkeeper to buy a pair of trousers for himself but there is only the last pair on the shelves, and it’s too long. Long trousers can always be shortened, can’t they? So Ismat takes his gifts home. Eid arrives, and with it comes a shock and a surprise. To be able to laugh and to be willing to adjust : these little life-affirming qualities are highlighted with affection and detail as text and pictures come together seamlessly in this story replete with cultural resonances.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
The Why Why Girl (6+)
Author: Mahasweta Devi Illustrator: Kanyika Kini
Moyna lives in a little tribal village. She cannot go to school because she has to tend the goats, collect the firewood, fetch the water… But she is so full of questions that the postmaster calls her the ‘why-why girl’! Mahasweta Devi is one of India’s foremost writers. In this delightful story, her first picture book, and the only children’s book she has written in English, she tells us how she meets Moyna (and her mongoose!) and helps her find answers to all the why-whys – in books, that Moyna herself learns to read. Some of the translations have been done by well-known writers: Malayalam by Paul Zacharia, Tamil by Ambai, and Kannada by Girish Karnad.
Price: Rs.150 Shop Now
Little Fingers (3+)
Author: Sheila Dhir Illustrator: Mugdha Sethi
Each finger has its own personality, and when ten little fingers come together, they make things happen. Playful verse and bright pictures imaginatively capture the energy of their busy, busy lives.
Price: Rs.125 Shop Now
Malu Bhalu (4+)
Author: Kamla Bhasin Illustrator: Bindia Thapar
This is a story about Malu, an adorable young polar bear growing up in the North Pole. As the tale unfolds through the adventures of Malu, the lilting cadence of the writing draws another larger picture: about girls, about what girls can do too. Yes, Malu is a female polar bear! The charming full page illustrations make this a most appealing picture book for children.
Price: Rs.125 Shop Now
Why Paploo was Perplexed (5+)
Author: Devashish Makhija Illustrator: Tiya James
Paploo is a curious little fellow, full of questions and not afraid of asking. And that’s how children should be, says the author — full of questions and free to come to their own conclusions. Pictures and words in verse are delightfully stood on their heads in this story that amuses even as it sets the reader thinking about the world in which we live.
Price: Rs.135 Shop Now
A Walk with Thambi (4+)
Author: Lavanya Karthik Illustrator: Proiti Roy
“We were late. We were running in the street. We had played in the river, and we had climbed trees…” Everything Amma had said NOT to do! Proiti Roy’s joyous pictures light up the bond between a boy and a dog. Woven into this story of everyday fun are sensory descriptions, and visual details like a walking stick in the boy’s hand or pocket, the dog guiding his friend… clues that gently tell us that the boy is blind.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
Maoo and the Moustaches (4+)
Author: Arunima Chatterjee Illustrator: Prabha Mallya
Maoo the kitten looks up — and there… above Murali Mama’s jolly smile is something thunderous and black, thick and curly… his moustache! Terrified, Maoo runs away. It takes more encounters with some fuzzy, reedy, bushy moustaches and a few long, soft, pointy whiskers for his hairy woes to end. This lively tale gets livelier with Prabha Mallya’s animation-like pictures. Pop-out colours draw the eye to what’s not to be missed in this kitten’s coming-of-age story! Get ready for an action packed ride of adventures and misadventures, as Vismay and Cody make a home and the headlines in this story inspired by true events.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
The Colour Thief (5+)
Author: Stephen Aitken & Sylvia Sikundar Illustrator: Sandhya Prabhat
What happens when a grouchy giant decides to scoop all colour out of the world – from the trees and flowers, from the birds and animals, the fish and the waters? A quaint, fairytale-like story, set amidst magnificent mountains, leafy forests, swirling seas and skies. Sandhya Prabhat’s pictures play with the ebb and flow of colour, startling the reader with brilliantly coloured pages and stark, monochromatic ones. A multi-hued journey in which a little girl who can’t see helps the grouchy giant see the world around in a completely new way.
Price: Rs.225 Shop Now
Red (6+)
Author: Sagar Kolwankar Illustrator: Sagar Kolwankar
“I came across a photo of a boy who had survived a bombing. Covered in blood and dust he stared directly into the camera with empty eyes. I could feel the pain but would never understand what he had been through. Red is my attempt at imagining the feelings of children in war-torn parts of the world,” says Sagar Kolwankar. A strong, poignant story about how armed conflict ravages a child’s everyday, how the devastation is not just of homes and lives but also of spirit. Sagar uses the power of colour to evoke two very different emotions in the course of the narrative. Equally effective is the startling use of ripped paper, seeming to suggest the torn innocence of childhood.
Price: Rs.200 Shop Now
A Home of our Own (5+)
Author: Meghaa Aggarwal Illustrator: Habib Ali
“Let’s play house-house!” decide Sunehri and her friends. So they put together some old plates and bowls, empty packets of chips, plastic bottles, a broken helmet… things they’ve collected going about their work in the city on whose streets they live. The game loved by children everywhere takes on a poignant layer when played by those who have never known a home. Pictures full of exuberance and detail bring out their spontaneous joy in a make-believe world, which trips side by side with the harsh reality of their lives.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
Music for Joshua (6+)
Author: Chatura Rao Illustrator: Satwik Gade
Joshua loves music. But learning to play an instrument isn’t likely, he knows. One day he hears the notes of a guitar… and ends up following a music teacher from house to house, watching and listening. If only he could learn too! From the award-winning author of Gone Grandmother comes another endearing story that takes us into the heart of a family from the small East Indian community of Mumbai. Against a hazy skyline of high-rises, amidst monsoon skies, the buoyant pictures zoom in on colourful old buildings, trellised balconies, sloping roofs and cobbled alleys to bring us the ambience of a typical ‘gaothan’.
Price: Rs.175 Shop Now
Bhimrao Ambedkar: The Boy who Asked Why (6+)
Author: Sowmya Rajendran Illustrator: Satwik Gade
Why do I have to sit separately in a corner of the classroom? Why can’t I drink water from the tap like other children? Why do the teachers never touch my books? The ‘whys’ shout louder in little Bhim’s head as he grows up, trailed constantly by the monster of untouchability. They catapult him into a lifetime of struggle for equality. They shape the remarkable ideas that are the cornerstone of the Indian Constitution, which he drafted as India’s first Law Minister. The Boy Who Asked Why follows the life of an extraordinary man, ‘Babasaheb’ Bhimrao Ambedkar, who energised the struggle against caste prejudice. His fiery speeches and writings urged Dalits to protest against the inhumanity they suffered, and continue to suffer. This straightforward telling, visualised with quirky imagination, brings to children a man whose story will raise their awareness of discrimination — leading them, perhaps, to ask their own whys.
Price: Rs.185 Shop Now