Journey with Sonia Mehta and Sohini Mitra

 Panelist:

1. Sonia Mehta 

 

• co-founded Podsquad, a company that creates learning tools for children.

• children’s author (who sees India’s first dedicated children’s newspaper sections)

• conceptualising the Bournvita Quiz Contest for television;

• writing books, songs, poems, and stories for publishers in India, Africa, the USA, and the UK.

2. Sohini Mitra 

• Publisher with over 14 years of experience.

• Collaborated with literary giants for content.

• Heads the children's and YA lists at Penguin Random House India. 

The opening of the session was quite warm. Children's books have always been of interest to me, so this session seemed to be a boon. The discussion began with who makes decisions about which book the child should read. The answer is obviously the parents. Yes, for small children, it is necessary to pick one up for them. This way, they learn how to select books for themselves, but as children grow up, they start choosing books for themselves. They described the following factors that affect our decision:

FREEDOM OF CHOICE
 
Sonia ma'am mentioned that, generally, children get freedom of choice in books by twelve and a half years of age. This freedom of choice is very important. This helps children become more confident. There was a small moment of sharing where the host mentioned her experience choosing books in the library. This sharing reminded me of my school days, when I used to wait for library periods to get one book. After my tenth board exam, I was at home, and then my brother was going to school. He used to ask me which book I would like to read, and he used to issue it and bring it for me.

PEER GROUPS

The other reason for choosing books among young people is peer group. Yes, they influence a lot. Sonia ma'am, said children look at each other and then choose books. They do ask for suggestions from their friends. I still remember how I developed my interest in Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys after seeing my friends. Peer groups have a great influence on shaping their personalities.

CULTURE

 

Now, culture plays a beautiful role in the selection of books. We love to read about our culture. We love reading a lot of mythological books. I still remember stories from the Panchatantra that are full of moral values. Those books perfectly paint our culture. They teach us about high-value living. Similarly, she mentioned how we chose Harry Potter and their cultural values.

 

I am sure this discussion will help both children and parents make good book choices.

 

Another insightful round was with Sohini, as she showed us what we buy. She says that best sellers keep multiplying in sales, but that doesn't mean others are of no use. Every book is unique and beautiful, and we should give every book a chance to proveitsr own values.

 

Further, as the discussion rolled on, many sagacious ideas about a child's growth and development popped up. She suggested circulating good-read books in schools where children could access them easily. She counselled us about creating reading clubs or book clubs in our apartments or society. I think this idea is very creative, and it helps create a cosy bond between kids and elders. They will see them as helping and trusting people. She also proposed creating focused groups where kids are encouraged to review books. This would bring massive growth in quality book production in the children's genre. This is a kid's world, and they know what they want; we should encourage them to write what they want.

Yet another aspect we should remember when we write children's books is to focus on the target age group. The target group tells us how you will design your page. Sonia also emphasised the number of word counts you should stick to per page. For example, for small kids, we prefer fewer words per page and filling the page with graphics so that the children grasp more. While for older kids we write more word counts.

 

Then there was a talk about how to attract the attention of the children.

 

Without attention, it is impossible to read. Children are very inquisitive. They eagerly wait to learn and explore new things. So, if they find something new, that definitely attracts their attention.

 

Both of them emphasised soft skill curriculum-based books. This idea is quite good. We should include soft skill training in the curriculum. We should encourage learning through interest. We should use these books to generate interest in children and then slowly introduce the curriculum and help them understand. I think this will work well.

 

In addition to this, Sonia ma'am, stresses the importance of creating visually appealing works. This creates great interest in young ones. I still remember when my 4-year old niece showed me her picture book and told me the whole story. We can create this effect in our books with the help of design and art. For young ones, font size matters a lot. A design team plays magic in children's books. 

 

Lastly, but not least, both panellists talked about the importance of research in producing quality and reliable books. Children trust books, and they gain knowledge from them, so it is our ethical responsibility to fact-check. We should lay the right foundations in kids lives.

 

On closing notes, these words were the gem of all. Sonia ma'am, clearly said that play and book reading are two integral elements in the growth and development of children. Neither of them can take the place of the other. Toys and games cannot serve as supplements or replace books. Furthermore, my thoughts resonated with her thoughts of "stem stories" (activities with children)—she explained using a balloon or a pair of socks and slowly pushing a ball through it and then explaining peristaltic movement to them. This is really innovative, and I too want children to understand facts like this.

 

This session was really a great blessing.

 

This was for a #blogchatter writfest season 7 session on why to read children's books on May 26, 2023.