Ep. 43: Reflecting the richness and diversity of our world in children's books with Namrata Tripathi, VP & Publisher of Kokila, an imprint of Penguin Random House

The Indian Edit

Have a kid? Know a kid? Were a kid? This final episode of 2020 is a must listen! Honored to have publishing powerhouse Namrata Tripathi (founder and publisher of Kokila Books) join me in this wonderful chat where she talks about the power of representation in children’s literature, how her international upbringing has shaped her, and what it’s like to create a picture book with His Holiness The Dalai Lama!

SHOWNOTES FOR EPISODE 43:

Kokila Books on the web and instagram

Guardian article (that I misquoted!) about the UK survey from the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education, which found that the proportion of British children’s books featuring a black, Asian or minority ethnic main character had increased to 5% in 2019, from just 1% in 2017.

Namrata’s Turban Talk for Ignite @ Kickstarter

KOKILA BOOKS (Namrata shared how some of these gems were created):

Fauja Singh Keeps Going: The True Story of the Oldest Person to Ever Run a Marathon by Simran Jeet Singh

The Seed of Compassion: Lessons from the Life and Teachings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, illustrated by Bao Luu

Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay

Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi and illustrated by Ashley Lukashevsky

The Ocean Calls: A Haenyeo Mermaid Story by Tina Cho, illustrated by Jess X. Snow

My Rainbow by DeShanna Neal and Trinity Neal, illustrated by Art Twink

The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani

PRE-ORDER:

Fatima's Great Outdoors by Ambreen Tariq , illustrated by Stevie Lewis

Laxmi's Mooch by Shelly Anand, illustrated by Nabi H. Ali

OTHER BOOKS WE DISCUSSED:

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Begin Again: James Baldwin's America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own by Eddie S. Glaude

The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio

The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are by Brené Brown

Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot by Mikki Kendall

The Light of the World: A Memoir by Elizabeth Alexander

Follow us on Instagram for more on Namrata, Kokila, and everything we mentioned in this episode!

Special thanks to Varun Dhabe, Aman Moroney and the team @ Boon Castle / Flying Carpet Productions for audio post-production engineering!