[1]The fantasyland of stories came to life as kids shared their date with literature at the fourth edition of the ongoing Aviva Bookaroo Children’s literature festival at Sanskriti Kendra, Anandgram. The festival is bigger this year with activities like storytelling, poems, quizzes, sing-a-long, comic, graphic novel reading, music and musical stories.
As avid book readers thronged the venue, publishers threw light on the market of children’s literature in India. “This market has huge potential, but there’s a long way to go. The latest love of kids is the diary series. We have The Diary of Amos Lee series, where a kid from Singapore begins writing in a toilet as he spends so much time there. Kids relate to such books. Fantasy is also a favourite genre among kids,” says Vatsala Kaul Banerjee, of Hachette India.
Anita Roy, from Young Zubaan publishing house, says, “There are more bilingual books for younger readers today. Audio books and Internet applications are a huge hit. Publishers are interested in finding new ways to introduce books on net. The teen fiction and young adult books are a success. Besides J.K. Rowling and Stephenie Myer, Chetan Bhagat is topping the charts among young adults.”
Mythological stories have always had a strong presence in children’s literature, and it’s stayed the same despite the passage of time. Experts say Myth Quest series written by Anu Kumar, a small book of 56 pages, has many takers. “It’s an engaging storytelling style. It’s written in a narrative style that is engrossing. More such books would be welcome.”
Seconds Anita, “The classic Amar Chitra Katha graphic novels are doing great.”
Prayag Shukla, a Hindi fiction writer says that children’s books in Hindi are a hit. “But authors of children’s novels need encouragement and help. English authors have a much better distribution system than Indian authors. Epics are always a hit, but they’d do better if they are made into comic books and introduced in all Indian languages,” says Prayag.
Citing the major issues that writers of children’s books face today, author Poile Sengupta says, “We have talented Indian authors but the problem is with the distributors and bookshops. They only highlight books like Harry Potter and other popular names. Indian authors are not displayed properly. We also need more media attention. Journals should introduce a review corner for kids’ books.”
Second Vatsala, “We are still dominated by foreign writers. The display and sales of children’s books in bookshops is disorganised. The lack of a library system is also a drawback.”
About the changing style of writing, Prayag adds, “The style of writing has become more easy and fun.”
“It’s now the voice of children than voice of adults talking down to them. A more SMS kind of language with slangs is also being introduced,” seconds author John Dougherty.
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