Book Review : Up Down by Tulika

I was impressed with the given description for the book and immediately got this for Medha from library. It’s a simple story about a little boy who wants to play on a see-saw, but all his animal playmates are either too light or heavy for him – until a little girl comes along.

Title : Up Down

Author :  Vinayak Varma

Publisher : Tulika
Pages : 16
Ages:  3-6
Bilingual: English-Bengali, English-Hindi, English-Kannada, English-Tamil, English-Telugu

Story?

Books written and illustrated by the same person have a special appeal. There are very few of these among children’s books published in India. Up Down is one of them. When I chanced upon this unassuming little book years ago, I and Medha fell in love with it instantly.

Little Appu wants to play on the seesaw. But who will sit on the other side? A grasshopper? Or a mouse? Or ...? ‘A wonderfully simple approach to the concepts of light and heavy, up and down,’ the blurb on the website says.

What young children will like?

• The illustrations depict motion beautifully and add a zing to the catchy repetitive text. 
• The animated Appu is adorable; the bare-chested look succeeds in making him even more lovable. Medha kept asking why didn't wear a shirt? 
• She loved the way saying "Up Down, Up Down".

Medha liked it ? 

At the time we read the book, Medha was reluctant to make friends, preferring to play with his parents instead. We had tried convincing him that playing with peers would be more enjoyable. So the “seesaw story” struck a chord with her. She loved Appu and each every character in the book. After first reading, she was able to recite whole story in Telugu. I was surprised to see how much she liked the story in the first reading itself. :) 

My Rating

5/5 

Though recommended age is 3-5 years, I suggest you to read this book once kid is 2 years old. All the kids enjoy this story for sure as most of the kids know what is see-saw by 1.5 years itself.