Celebrate Durga Puja With Me! (From The Toddler Diaries)

Living in a foreign country away from grandparents and relatives, kids living abroad hardly know how each festival is celebrated...Little girl Riya, with full of happiness and excitement tells the readers how Durga Puja is celebrated. She tells the reason why Durga Puja is celebrated. She tells how her family gets ready prior to Durga Puja, by doing a lot of shopping purchasing toys, gifts and new clothes...Durga Puja is celebrated for ten days and author explains kids about the fun and importance of each day. The beautiful illustrations takes readers imagination directly to the pandals, mandri / temple, pandal ground and performance stage. The visuals are treat to little kids..Author has written the whole book in simple words for kids to read and relate easily. This book is a treasure for parents who want to stay connected with their roots and want to teach their kids about festivals.....If you’re looking for teaching kids on various diversity this is the perfect book...

We are a Muslim family so do not typically celebrate Puja festivals, but we purchased this book so we could learn about this important Hindu celebration. My five year old daughter simply loved this book and could not get enough of it. She showed her friends and proudly talked about everything she learned about Ma Durga. Very happy we purchased this title and I will getting the other books from this series as well!

You need to read books about festivals around the world. In India, every festival is celebrated in different ways. And this boko is a perfect example of that. If you pick up books about Durga puja and Navratri , every one will be different. I specially loved the dictionary in the back.

I (Rajat's wife Payal) am always on a lookout for books that explain our festivals to kids in easy to understand and enjoyable manner. And such books are not very easy to come by. So when I heard about this book, I ordered it right away. And it really was an amazing experience going through it the first time (and the second time and the third time and so on). I read this book with my 14-month old baby. She was so thrilled to see the vibrant colors on each page. She was touching the pages and turning the pages (I must admit; I was scared that she may rip the pages; but I am happy that the book is still very much intact after a month of being read again and again - a testament to the quality of pages of this book :)). Well so coming back to the book – the pictures are absolutely vibrant. Another thing that is noteworthy is the setting of the book. Just because it explains an age old festival, does not mean that the setting should be dated. The book contains sufficient modern context so that the child can understand the book in the light of her life and that’s what makes this book that engaging. And lastly, the rhythmic manner in which the story has been narrated is absolutely amazing. It renders itself as something that you can sing along especially when you are trying to engage a 14-month baby. And one more thing – my 8-year-old also thoroughly enjoyed the book. Now she could not associate with all the festivities of Durga Pooja since we don't celebrate it, but she was so intrigued by it that she said "mommy, can we celebrate Durga Pooja next year"!!Waiting for more such books!!- Payal

This is a great book! Totally accurate, not too many words, beautiful illustrations that enchant my baby. I love this book and I really hope the author makes more!

Beautifully written and illustrated. A very unique and interesting way of introducing India festivals to kids of Indian origin. Looking forward to more books!

Bought the book for my kids 5 and 3. My 5 year old is all interested in Indian festivals so this book is nice cause it keeps it real for her with the shopping and the dancing and the family. It introduces all the elements of Durga Puja in a cute kids perspective. It introduces Bengali words to the kids which is good cause living outside India its hard for the kids to know or even hear these words. My 3 yr old just loves the colors and the drawings. I love how the words rhyme so they like to read along. As a parent I like the way the essence of each day is captured in a few lines and the drawings are so detailed that the kids can just find something new and different every time they look at the page. The book is kid friendly meaning the pages are good quality and cannot be ripped easily. It is our current fav breakfast book.

The book has very colorful illustrations and catchy descriptions that convey the true nature of the famous Durga Puja. I really like the way Shoumi goes over how each day is celebrated in detail. Delightful reading for the whole family.

Lovely colourful illustrations and rhymes. Perfect for adults and children as an introduction to the festival. Lovely resource for schools.

Awesome. Bought it for my 3 year old daughter who had recently been to India and witnessed the Durga Pujo. She could relate to the story and loved the illustrations. As for myself, it was very nostalgic to read through and it brought back childhood memories. Had been waiting for such a book for a while. Highly recommend. Would be an great gift too.

Days of Festivities are here again. Come let's read about Durga Pujo with Riya.When browsing for books about Indian Festivals we chanced upon this book.It was a new and fun read for the kids and me.My kids don't know about Durga Pooja. I too have visited the Pandals 1-2 times in my entire life. So I bought this book with the intention of introducing this Bengali festival and also brush up on my knowledge ;)No age limit. The story and details are explained in such a way that kids and adults both can enjoy the book. Hence it is also suitable for International audience too.The beautiful illustrations and poetic explanation makes you look at each page's illustration and note the things mentioned in the verses.Just right enough information. This book is about the 5 days of Pujo. So only that is highlighted. I liked that a lot.The distinctive Bengali connection is obvious. The words and their spellings are given as a True Bengali would proudly pronounce them. It gives a actual feel of festival and this beautiful community who love these 5 days of celebration, the food and cultural importance.My kids came to know about Ma Durga's children: Ganesh, Karthik, Saraswati and Lakshmi. They were looking for each on each page. Here too the way these Gods and Goddess are illustrated has a Bengali touch. They were amazed to know that Goddess Durga has 108 names.I came to know about different names like Dhunuchi dancer, Sindoor Khela etc which we have seen thanks to our Bollywood movies.

The book brings to life the fun as well as the devotion during Durga Puja. Since the book is written in verse there is a musical undercurrent to the book. This book has words like protima, dhaki, etc giving you a flavour of Calcutta. You even have an Americanism sneaking in where the author uses the word “fall”, for the season when Durga Puja takes place. By using contextual words like “bhog“, “khichudi“, the child is introduced to the cultural flavour of the festival. It will give them a tangible link to the things that they can identify themselves when they attend the Puja.The illustrations complement the verse. They are bright, colourful and attractive, bringing to life the author’s words. My favourite is the one in which the sculptor is painting the eyes of the goddess. An important part of the Pujo has been shown with simplicity and devotion.Amar Chitra Katha, Tinkle, etc have been staples in introducing children to Indian heritage and culture. However, there is a lack of books which cater primarily to younger children who are just learning to read. This book fills the gap in the market for 3 to 5-year-olds. The Toddler Diary Series is an entertaining and colourful way to keep the children in touch with their roots, making them aware of their links to India. The book is perfect for cosy bedtime reads as well as for reading practice.

I recently came across this amazing book when I was browsing for a story narration session for my virtual multi activity cultural class that I conduct for children.The moment I read the sample, without thinking twice, I immediately purchased the kindle version. The illustrations are colourful and detailed so beautifully that compliment the apt, short and poetic script.The children got a virtual tour of Durgashtami celebrations of Kolkatta with every minute aspect explained so explicitly - words like Dhaak* ( drums), beguni ( Bengali dish) and many more.During the story narration, one 6 yr child was observant to see the feather stuck on the drum and asked the reason for the same. I explained that they are the decorations to make the drum / dhaak* more attractive.Keep more coming Shoumi !- Deepa