I am posting this #kbcbookbingo2022 on behalf of my son Advik, who turned 4 this March. We had introduced books to Advik since the very beginning, but things changed dramatically when a dear friend Gaurs Bhushan introduced us to KBC. The variety of books that Advik got was unimaginable and the recommendations that we get has us overwhelmed at times, as we struggle to keep up with our TBR book lists! Advik has become a huge fan of Julia Donaldson and Eric Carle books. Though he has not moved to independent reading yet, he selected all the books for this book bingo and narrated the reviews.
- A green colored book – Monkey Puzzle by Julia Donaldson
Little Monkey is looking for his mum and little butterfly has agreed to help him but all they are finding are the wrong animals because butterfly doesn’t know that monkey’s mum looks exactly like him and realizes this only at the end! This is a great book for toddlers and preschoolers which describes various animals and their offsprings along with their habitat in an interesting way. The story is woven around a misunderstanding and is helpful in teaching a life lesson to the children about understanding different people’s point of view also.
- A book with a Penguin character – Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers
A boy finds a penguin on his doorstep and thinks that the penguin is lost and wants to help the penguin. He goes to the lost and found counter, but no one was missing a penguin. The boy was wondering about the reasons for the sadness of Penguin and wants to make the Penguin happy. This is a great book to teach the value of companionship and importance of each other’s company. The book also addresses the importance of friendship and care at a very young age and children can relate to the actions of the boy very well.
- A Tom Percival book – Perfectly Norman
Young Norman was Perfectly Normal and then one day he grew a pair of wings. He wanted to hide it from everyone and was worried that his parents might say, so he wore a jacket and tried hard to be Normal again. This is a perfect book to teach your child about self-acceptance and individuality and uses very expressive pictures to deliver the message of being yourself. This book is a great asset for parents who are looking for book recommendations to make their children understand various physical, intellectual and behavioral differences in children like autism, disability etc.
- A book with siblings – Why I love my sister by Harper Collins
This book is about the deep friendship between a brother and sister. Everyone including Advik loves their sister. Do you love your sister? If you want to pamper your sister emotionally, this book is perfect to co-read with your sister. With very beautiful pictures and cute illustrations, the book describes the invaluable bond between siblings through familiar animals and charming words. Whenever Advik has to assert his love for his big sister, he runs to his bookshelf and shows her this book.
- A book about school – The Magic School Bus inside a Volcano by Kristin Earhart and Joanna Cole
Ms. Frizzle went in the core of the Earth with the students in the Magic School Bus but as they were coming out, the volcano erupts. What then? Will they ever reach school again? This is an fantasy cum informative book about explaining the basics of volcanoes to the young ones in a fun-filled manner. Though the entire Magic School Bus series is a fantastic read, this one top our list due to Advik’s over inquisitiveness about volcanoes.
This book and the entire MAGIC SCHOOL BUS SERIES can be ordered from Scholastic India via our kbc storefront as well. Click our special kbc storefront link and type The Magic School Bus: Inside a Volcano. in search. Scholastic India always has special offers on.
- A rib-tickling book – The World’s funniest folktales by Rajee Raman
This book includes the world’s funniest folk tales that will make you burst with laughter. Though this book is not recommended for those who are not into independent reading, it’s a great book for read aloud sessions, where you and your childoo can have a hearty laugh. The best part about this funny book is that it captures funny folk tales from various countries and in the process exposes your child to a variety of customs and traditions as well.
This book can be ordered from Scholastic India via our kbc storefront as well. Scholastic India always has special offers on.
- A book by an Indian author – Can you kiss your own face? by Ramesh Bijlani (NBT)
This book is about a girl who is so independent that she does everything on her own. Everything means everything, but will she be able to kiss her own face? While everyone is advocating for independence, here is a book that teaches interdependence in a very subtle way and that too in a manner which can be easily understood by kids. This great book also explains the importance of reciprocity be it in love, empathy or care.
- An award-winning book – Wonky Donkey by Craig Smith (NZ Post Children’s Choice award in 2010)
This hilarious book is about a spunky, hanky-panky cranky stinky dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey, which Advik loved to read on a repeat mode and which made him laugh a lot. This is a rhyming book which is excellent for read aloud sessions, and beautifully explains the virtues of self-acceptance in a fun-filled manner. What we loved the most about this book was the plethora of rhyming words, which are fun to be pronounced loudly and we also tried to play tongue twisters with the wonky donkey descriptions.
This book can be ordered from Scholastic India via our kbc storefront as well. Scholastic India always has special offers on.
- A book with a female protagonist – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Wonder House
Snow White and the seven dwarfs includes a kind princess and seven dwarfs but we should not forget her evil stepmother and the apple! She wanted to kill Snow White and become the prettiest person. Can she succeed in her plan? A children’s fairy tale told with very simple texts and captivating illustrations, this book is highly recommended if your kid loves to read or listen to fairy tales.
- A book that breaks gender stereotypes – Main Tumse Achha hun By Sigrun Shrivastav
A boy thinks that he is better than his sister. He also believes that his sister cannot play cricket, but, he is in for a surprise and learns a lesson for lifetime. This book is also available in bilingual format in NBT and is a great help for parents who want to teach their children about gender equality and non-stereotyping of roles and activities. This book is really helpful to make the young ones understand that there is no such work which can be done by a particular gender only.
- A Scholastic book – Little Monkey gets lost by Kuntie Ramdat Balkaran
This is the story about an inquisitive monkey who is in the search of his home. Will he ever be able to find his home? An awesome book to teach young ones where different animals, birds and insects live and what their homes are made up of. This book beautifully explains the habitats of various creatures with remarkable illustrations which can be easily understood by toddlers and preschoolers.
This book can be ordered from Scholastic India via our kbc storefront as well. Scholastic India always has special offers on.
- A Zayn & Zoey book – Zayn and Zoey Learn about Dinosaurs
In this book, Zayn and Zoey explore the different types of dinosaurs and their interesting facts with Max, a toy dinosaur that can actually come to life and talk and play. A must have book if your childoo is a dinosaur fan, as this book beautifully explains different dinosaurs, their habits as well as the reasons for their extinction. It’s a very informative book and you will be amazed at the pronunciation skill of your child after reading this book as he/she will flaunt his knowledge of various names of dinosaurs without much difficulty.
ONLY KBC MEMBERS HAVE A SPECIAL COUPON CODE KBC15 which will give you 15% OFF when you order directly from the ZAYN AND ZOEY website. Simply click this link that takes you to the Zayn and Zoey shop on their website.
- A non-fiction book/encyclopedia – V for Vaccine: A one shot introduction to Vaccines By HarperCollins India, illustrated by Isha Nagar
This book is about the benefits of vaccines. It tells us about our immune system and how we are able to fight and prevent diseases through our immune system and what role vaccines play in preventing diseases and fighting diseases and much more. With quirky illustrations and an easy-to-understand format, this book is a must have to introduce your child to the world of vaccines. While providing answers to basic questions like how vaccines are made and whether animals get vaccines, this book cleverly delivers a plethora of knowledge about ways to build immunity and staying healthy. A must read in the era of pandemic to make your young one understand the importance of vaccination.
- A mystery/adventure book – The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffers
This is an adventurous book about a boy who finds a plane in his closet and gets on it only to find it crash landing on the moon with no fuel. In complete darkness and loneliness, when he begins to lose hope, he finds a friend from distant space who is also in need of help. Both of them mutually agree to help each other and reach their respective homes. A book that teaches us the lesson of mutual friendship, trust and helping, it explains the story though beautiful illustrations, capturing the mood and aura of the story.
- A book on space/solar system – Planets by Om Kids
This book tells us about the solar system and the planets and different facts about the planets and the solar system. Which is the biggest planet? Which planet is the closest to the sun? Which is the hottest planet? Which planet is known as Earth’s twin? Find answers to all these questions in this exciting book on the Solar System. It is a very simple and informative book to introduce solar system / planets to toddlers and preschoolers.
- A book on any festival – Holi by Junior Diamonds
This book is related to the Indian festival Holi, its different names, different reasons for celebrating Holi and different ways of celebrating it. This is a great book to make the little ones understand the festival of Holi, the reason behind its celebration, different customs and traditions associated with it and ways of celebrations.
- A book about a place in India – An ancient tale from Andaman by Anvita Abbi
It’s the story of the first man who inhabited the Andaman Islands and how he discovered food, water sources and other means of living for his existence. This book illustrates a mythical story about how life began on Andaman Island. Accompanied with creative visual illustrations, it generates immense curiosity among children about the far-flung Andamans.
- A book that talks about food – Sabziyon wale gamle By Vandana Pushpendra
Deepak and Rajni are very well behaved kids and also eat very well. Their mother tells them about various foods every day and how the foods are grown. One day they want to see the vegetables growing in the fields, but, their mother can’t find a farm in the big city. What does she do then? Living in the cities has deprived the children from experiencing the joy of growing food and harvesting them. This book tries to bridge this gap and explains beautifully how food can also be grown in cities if we have the desire. Children learn a lot about harvesting and different types of vegetables to be grown and begin experimenting with growing food themselves after reading this book!
- A bilingual book – Kyun? | Why? By Meenakshi Swami
This book is about a child who is asking impossible questions. What if I had wings? Why does grandpa’s head shines like the moon and much more! His mother is answering all his questions very patiently. Being bilingual, it helps to understand the meaning very well for the readers who are starting with independent reading.
- An inspiring book – What can I be? by Niyatee Parikh Sharma
This book describes a conversation between a child and his mother. It is a very inspiring book and tells us that nothing is impossible in this world. It talks about different professionals that you can be in the future like an architect, a mountaineer, or an entomologist, etc. This is a must have book to make your young one understand that there is no limit to your imagination and nothing can stop you in your endeavor of becoming what you want to be.
- A book by your favorite illustrator – My Blue Elephant by Vidya Varadarajan, illustrated by the brilliant Zainab Tambawalla
A girl has a big secret- a pet Elephant! Nobody knows about it. But, when it grows extra large, Ms. Renu residing upstairs gets to know about it. Finally, she decides to tell her mother, only to realize that her mother knew about it all along. A good book for bedtime reading, this book explores a very important aspect of parent-child relationship- honesty. This is a very short story but has excellent illustrations which spectacularly capture the essence of the story.
Zainab Tambawalla has illustrated several books for Scholastic and other publishers. What makes her illustrations unique is that the characters seem to appear lively with the progression of narrative in the book and which makes the reading so much more interesting.
This book can be ordered from Scholastic India via our kbc storefront as well. Scholastic India always has special offers on.
- A book by your favorite author – The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
This is a story about a caterpillar who over-eats everyday and increases the amount of food he eats. By Saturday he eats lots and lots of fast food and grows too fat, now what will happen next? I loved this book for its unique style of storytelling with holes in the pages for number counting and uneven size of pages. A book to be read on repeat mode! Advik loves to put his fingers in the holes provided on each book and this was the first book which got him counting. The illustrations are so amazing that even very small children can understand without much difficulty. That’s the reason Advik presented this book in his nursery class ‘Show and Tell’ for favourite book.
- A new author you were introduced to – Punti’s Wedding by Dipanwita Roy
This is a story about the wedding of Punti, a fish, but then the fish realizes that there’s too much garbage to be cleared before they start to celebrate the wedding! What happens next? Will they still be able to have their best friend’s wedding? The book illustrates the story of two different fish and how they overcome every barrier to spend an amicable life together.
- A book that helped address an issue – Ravi’s Roar by Tom Percival
Ravi is the youngest in his family, even his dog is an inch or two taller than him. This is a matter of concern for Ravi and due to this he misses a lot of fun and gets angry and eventually turns into a tiger. What happens then? Will he ever become Ravi again? Finally, he realizes his mistakes and amends his behaviour and enjoys with his family and friends. A must have book for dealing with toddler tantrums and addressing behavioral issues.
- A book on potty humor – I want my Potty by Tony Ross
The princess says that she hates nappies, the Queen tells her that potty’s the place to use but the princess thinks that the potty’s the worst place. This book takes its readers on a roller coaster hilarious ride of royal potty training. A book on very relatable topic which everyone faces with their young ones, this book makes the reading really joyful and entertaining with quirky illustrations.
- An interactive book with an unconventional format – Peppa Pig (Happy Birthday Mummy) by Lady Bug
This is an audio book with a very interesting format. It has a cut-out cake and candles and a button to light up the candles on cake. What’s more interesting is that you can blow off the candles by yourself with your mouth or by just tapping on the cake! An amazing book which we enjoyed immensely and which we read whenever there is a birthday in our family. It’s the story about Mummy Pig’s birthday and Peppa and George have made her a yummy cake but the candles are going off again and again due to some reason. First George blows it, then Peppa blows it, then the wind blows it, then Daddy says Shhhh and the candles go out! What then, will they ever be able to take the cake to mummy?
- A picture book with more than 40 pages – The Germ Academy by Rea Malhotra Mukhtyar & Shahena Zaveri
There is a germ academy in the darkest corner of the earth. All the germs study there, get trained, pass and go out to create havoc for humans. Same way, the terrible germ, Covie passed out from there and is now troubling everyone and the Soap Squad is trying to kill him. Will they ever be able to kill Covie?
An amazing book that helped us understand the pandemic in an interesting way. We had an easy time understanding and addressing issues like germs, their infectious designs, benefits of hygiene etc. through this book.
- A hook book (by Duckbill) – Homework by Lavanya Karthik
This book is based on a boy whose teacher gave homework to collect an egg, keep it warm, keep it safe and watch it hatch. But the boy did not want an ordinary egg. What happens next? Will he be able to complete his homework? A great book for a read aloud, this book captures the essence of childhood innocence at best. With its simple texts and easy to understand language, this book immensely helps the readers who are advancing towards independent reading. Ideal for 5-8 years.
- A book on being eco-friendly – Go Green: Renewable Energy by Om Kids
A lovely book for toddlers to make them understand the value of natural resources and educate them about the various ways of creating / producing renewable energy to sustain ourselves. This book can very well provide the basics of being sustainable, not wasting our resources and using the available resources judiciously so as to save it for future generations. The book has beautiful illustrations through which kids can easily understand the information provided.
- A book that was gifted to you – Farm by Wonder House
This book tells us about different farm animals, like cows, goats, horses, etc and how they live. This book is good for introducing your child to different animals along with their pictorial reference so that they can relate to it easily. The book beautifully depicts the animals that we generally see in our day-to-day life and explains various facts about them.
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