Tale spin

Germs in watercolourRea MalhotraIn the thick of the first lockdown Rea Malhotra Mukhtyar got thinking about how children might be making sense of this strange new world where cuddles and adventure were suddenly out of bounds ldquoGiven that I am a teacher I was particularly keen to make something that helped adults explain the pandemic to children Inspired by a certain pesky virus that just wonrsquot go away I wrote The Germ Academy in midMay of 2020rdquo says the teacher with the Bombay International School MumbaiShe reached out on social media looking for an illustrator to collaborate with and mutual friends put her in touch with Shahena ldquoWe knew from the beginning that we wanted the book to appeal to both adults and children Big fans of watercolourrsquos whimsical nature we immediately decided to create a vibrant world of germsmdashsome a humorous interpretation of their name chickenpox others influenced by the germrsquos actual genetic makeup flurdquo Mukhtyar addsWhat The Germ Academy HarperCollins Publishers IndiaFor Rs 299Nani has got your backThis is the fourth title in the Ninja Nani series of middlegrade novels that follow the madcap adventures of Deepu and his granny who is accidentally zapped with ninja powers Author Lavanya Karthik says ldquoEach book features a cast of quirky characters including a 93yearold alien hunter the Mayorrsquos mummy and a little dog with a superhero dream of his ownLavanya KarthikAdd in some villains a dash of mystery a sprinkling of danger and some ninja moves That in a nutshell is Ninja Nanirdquo Karthik wanted to write a book that she would want to read ldquoSomething irreverent packed with jokes and comics and rooted in presentday IndiardquoWhat Ninja Nani and the Freaky Food Festival PenguinFor Rs 250Meet baby BhimThe Pandavas are all set to graduate from Guru Dronacharyarsquos school having learnt how to lead armies and wield battle magic Now they must display their skills in a grand tournament before the kingdom Author Anupam Arunachalam has written this third book in the Young Pandavas series and has also illustrated itAnupam ArunachalamHe says ldquoThe book stars the five Pandava brothers who are the heroes of the great epic the Mahabharata The Mahabharata usually introduces them as kids and then flies through their childhood which I felt was unfair because a lot of Indians are introduced to the story as kids and donrsquot get to see its heroes as peersrdquoWhat Young Pandavas 3 The Royal Tournament Hachette IndiaFor Rs 250Itrsquos a secret no moreWhats The Big Secret is a story about a little boy with a question one that no one seems to want to give him the answer to He wants to know what periods are And hersquos pretty relentless in his pursuit of an answer ldquoThis leads to some awkward moments for the adults in his life And some very entertaining ones for youmdashthe readerrdquo laughs author Sonali ShenoyThe story comes from her own childhood ldquoI had a really mischievous classmate who asked a couple of us girls what pads were used for And we didnrsquot tell him Then he came back two days later with the funniest answer that unfortunately would not translate well in print Fast forward to being an adult now thinking about all the stories I want to tellmdashthis one stood outrdquo The story is fastpaced funny and as sensitive as it is inquisitive It tells you itrsquos okay to have questionsWhat Whatrsquos the Big Secret PenguinFor Rs 250A star is bornA Picture book for children aged five to eight this celebrates young girls and music The lyrical prose along with striking illustrations by Nayantara Surendranath and Kanimozhi A tells a charming tale about how a young girl discovers music Nandita da Cunha says the story is loosely based on a childhood incident in the life of late sitar and surbahar maestro Annapurna DeviNandita da CunhaldquoThe book reminds us that gender matters less than we think Annapurna Devi went on to establish mastery over her music and received wide acclaim But for her the highest reward was excellence in music she worshipped music She believed that women should stand up for what they believe in and realise their full potentialrdquoWhat The Magic in My Fingers Karadi TalesFor Rs 250