Books published by publisher TARGET BOOKS

A baby elephant is lost and alone in the forest, when a herd of buffaloes come along and take him into their fold - what is he now, and elephant, or a buffalo? This is a joyful tale that touches lightly on the themes of loss, adoption and integration. The happy illustrations and contemporary design and typography combine a graphic feel with the woodcut style of an earlier era. Released as a beautifully produced paperback for the first time, this book has sold over 250,000 copies worldwide and has been translated into eight languages.

This unusual art activity book featuring the deer introduces children to a variety of Indian art traditions. Through tracing, patterning and colouring the deer, children learn to explore each of the eight distinctive styles in the book – or just have fun. Children also get to experience and understand how art is as much about the imagination as it is about depiction. The book comes with clear and valuable information on Indian art traditions.

This new and fully re-designed edition of the now-classic book marks the tenth anniversary of Bhajju Shyam’s momentous journey to London, U.K. Bhajju Shyam, a celebrated and award-winning artist from the Gond tribe in central India, was commissioned to paint the walls of an Indian restaurant in London. He spent two months in the city, and it was the first time he encountered a western metropolis. The book that emerged from his journey is a visual travelogue that both mimics and subverts the typical colonial encounter. With radical innocence and great sophistication, Bhajju brings the signs of the Gond forest to bear on the city, turning London into an exotic jungle, a clever beastiary. The London Underground becomes a sinuous snake, Big Ben transforms into a rooster crowing the time, and an airplane — the first Bhajju ever encountered — is compared to an elephant miraculously flying through the air. It is rare to encounter a truly original vision that is capable of startling us into reexamining familiar sights. By breathing the ancient spirit of wonder back into the act of travel, The London Jungle Book does just that.

Mangoes and Bananas tells the tale of Kanchil the mouse deer and Monyet the monkey—two friends who plant a garden together. But when the trees bear fruit, Monyet begins to eat everything himself. Kanchil has to act fast if he is to get anything at all.Combining folk art with folk tale, this book reflects the warmth and richness of both traditions. The earth-toned illustrations—at once sophisticated and playful—are the result of a time-honored, all-natural process. This book will entertain anyone who seeks a quintessential folk story.Born and raised in India, Nathan Kumar Scott is a Seattle-based storyteller. Scott has collected folk tales from around the world.

Meet the ace detective Captain Coconut, whose great brain can solve any mystery, large or small. In The Case of the Missing Bananas, Captain Coconut finds himself on a slippery trail of peels and numbers. A detective tale that grips the reader's attention with its innovative illustrations and humorous raveling and unraveling of clues and numbers! This is the first book in the Captain Coconut series.

White Ravens 2013 Award Winner."Youngsters will delight in Neel’s fantastic excuses... The illustrations, a collage of tinted photographs and art, provide an appropriately surreal backdrop" -Kirkus Reviews"Art and text – intertwined with balanced whimsy – imbue Neel’s tall tales with colorful energy and unlimited creativity." - BookDragon, Smithsonian Asian Pacific American ProgramWho doesn’t know a child who is always ready with an implausible excuse when caught out by an indignant adult? Excuses Excuses builds on this universal experience using an Indian setting. Young Neel is the boy next door who can’t help getting into trouble, and yet he is endearing in his explanations. He has one for every day of the week and for every kind of adult — it seems that he may never run out of them! Wildly funny and imaginative, this narrative in nonsense verse is fast-paced and keeps young readers guessing. Unusual and dramatic art that captures the improbable colors of India adds zest to a story that all children would want to be a part of.US Grade Level Equivalent: 2US Guided Reading Level: M

A much-loved Tara classic children’s title is released in paperback for the first time. In India, a little girl goes to her local market, and her mother gives her a pocketful of change. But the girl has no idea what to buy – perhaps ‘something funny, nice or even strange’. But among the rich and colorful wonders of the market, from jolly bangle sellers to massive spice stands, flower shops to mask makers, she finds that the real fun’s not in the buying after all! She loves discovering wonderful, colorful stalls: "Jangle, Jangle, Jangle, I'm a bangle-holding stand," and "Silly, Silly, Silly, I'm a chili sort of sneeze." Told in Anushka Ravishankar’s inimitable nonsense verse and illustrated in Emanuele Scanziani’s vibrant paintings, this children's story is a bold and busy tribute to the vitality of everyday India. Award-winning Italian artist Emanuele Scanziani has created an exuberant Indian market with innovative typography that combines with the nonsense-verse to make a truly sumptuous, vibrant feast.US Grade Level Equivalent: 2US Guided Reading Level: L

"Remarkable. The sparse, simple story feels timeless and universal, and the illustrations are as important to telling the tale as is the text. This is a book to be lingered over and savored." — Debbie Stoller, BUST“ 'I want to be brave, and different.' Das’s memoir spills over the boundaries and scope of typical picture books, and her honesty and empathy are instantly palpable."— Publishers Weekly" Das debuts with illustrations done in a distinctive Indian style paired to a brief meditative text—part memoir, part artist’s statement, part rumination—on women’s personal journeys." — KirkusOn a train journey to a large city, a young woman notices a very poor girl. Who is she? Where is she going? What does her future hold? Hope Is a Girl Selling Fruit is a gentle, reflective account of a young woman’s thoughts and feelings as she comes into contact with the larger world. The rich imagery takes the story into another realm, inviting the reader to interpret it at many levels. Young Indian artist Amrita Das pushes the boundaries of her traditional art to radical new ends as she muses on women’s mobility, class, and choices.

One of the functions of literature is to share experiences and reflections, thus improving the community as a whole. It is in this spirit that the authors compiled here wrote stories full of important lessons. Critic August Nemo selected seven short stories with timeless messages: The Aged Mother by Matsuo BashoThe Five Boons of Life by Mark TwainThe Awful Fate of Melpomenus Jones by Stephen LeacockWork, Death and Sickness by Leo TolstoyThe Father by Bjørnstjerne BjørnsonEmancipation. A Life Fable by Kate ChopinAn Uncomfortable Bed by Guy de Maupassant For more books with interesting themes, be sure to check the other books in this collection!