The Golden days of Books for Children...

 

Every time I venture to buy a picture story book for my daughter I only end up disappointed big time. Children’s books now-a-days are so drab and plain boring. Our generation (from the 70s) was immensely lucky that we grew up in the era were the books came from the erstwhile Soviet Union. Almost every other children’s book was the English translation of the folklore, fairy tales and ditties of Russia, Ukraine and other former soviet states. I still remember them for their fantastic illustrations and distinctive styles. Master illustrators like Yuri Vasnetsov and Boris Kalaushin cast a spell on me that last till this day. They simply colored my childhood with endless fantasy and fun. I owe a lot to these gifted illustrators for shaping my artistic instincts as a kid.

But unfortunately the inflow of Russian books ceased abruptly after the 80s. Now we see only lackluster books that do not appeal to the kids and on top of it they're too expensive. The illustrations mostly lack in substance, scale and context. Iam shocked to see today kids books with pages and pages of texts with no or just a few appalling illustrations.

I decided to dig through the web in search of the Russian books of the good old days. To my disappointment, I realized that many Russian publication houses had closed shop with the end of the Soviet era. I could collect a few illustrations here and there that took me on a nostalgic trip.

The Wheat stalk,Malysh publishers Moscow 1981, Ukrainian folk tales collection with drawings by Y.Rachov.

Vladimir Suteev's masterpiece!

Few of my favorites...



Few unforgettable characters:The wily fox, the bad wolf, the Nanny goat, the clever hedgehog, the proud pussy

Tales of the Amber sea- a collection of Russian fairy tales - a very distinctive illustration style !

Kids & Cubs by O.Perovskaya- adventurous tale of kids who pet different animals

L.Yakhnin's Cardboard ClockSquare

E.Rachev's illustration's for 'Cockerel'

Yuri Vasnetsov's illustrations for Dancing Perch

Few books that took me back in time...

E.Serova's Hedgehog gloves with the classic illustrations of Boris Kalaushin

Picture Stories by Nikolai Ernestovich Radlov - My most favorite of the lot! Every page told a funny story...What can I do to get this book?!

The 1937 original cover page by Radlov on top..The new cover page (as published recently by New Century Book house) at the bottom - shocking!  See for yourself the degeneration of illustrations in today's kids books!

In my search, I discovered a fellow enthusiast Swetlana, who has featured many vintage books in her site - Library things. I was excited like a kid to see some of them that took me down the memory lane. How I wish to go back to the 70s and take my daughter too with me.

Laura's Animalarium is a treasure house for Illustration and art lovers. 

Thanks to efforts of Mr.Rajaram Vasudevan. An exclusive blog for Russian book lovers is created .Pls visit http://booksofsovietunion.blogspot.in/...and share.

The yellow house...



I Stepped out of my car;
The air wasn't mellow;

The sun was warm ;
The wind was calm.

With Mangalore tiles
and painted yellow-

A farmer’s house
by the coconut palm.

The door was locked;
The well was dry;

No sign of life-
Can you guess why?

Once green and fertile-
His paddy land;

Now My site –
A layout planned!

Bangalore Snap shots 08

The temple at Bellandur...

I Crave...

image courtesy : google

I crave to be a rain bow
    And caress the passing cloud
Bathe in the sun - gently glow
    Painted in colors loud

I crave to be a drop of dew
    And caress the grassy lawn
Pure and clear- fresh and new
    Reborn every morn at dawn

I crave to be a stringless kite
    And caress the easy wind
Soar far and fly – day and night
    Leaving all my load behind

I crave to be a paper boat
    And caress the flowing stream
Sail along –gloat afloat
    And reach the island I dream

I crave to be a gentle breeze
    And caress the bamboo thicket
Thro’ beetle holes- pass with ease
    Flute music is nirvana’s ticket

I crave to be a bumble bee
    And caress every garden flower
Sip the nectar – heart in glee
    Honey filled life forever

I crave to be a bubble of soap
    And caress the rays of light
Glide along- winds of hope
    Till the earth is out of sight

I crave to be an ocean wave
    And caress the golden beach
Tide above the rocks and lave
    A carefree life I beseech

13...

image courtesy : google

 

The number was 13 and she knocked twice

‘Come in’ she heard – a very gruff voice
She pushed the door and her heartbeat rose
As cigarette smoke choked her ring pierced nose
The curtains were down, the light was dim
The silhouette was still and that was him
‘Sit down’ he growled and pointed the bed
Quietly she sat and nodded her head
In every filthy finger- a stone studded ring
And heavy gold chains he wore like a king.

He dropped some ice in his glass of rum
And grinned at her- the bag of scum
Her looks had changed- wouldn't recognize her
He was the very reason why she was there
A childhood snatched and a path of woe
Darkness thrust -Thirteen years ago.
Her parents and her village –stuck in poverty
Jobs he had promised and a life in the city
She journeyed with the wolf and 12 other sheep
Only to be slaughtered and the meat sold cheap

Her whole weary life flashed ‘fore her eyes
Her ears filled with the entrapped sheep’s cries
Her anger she had saved all these years
For the payback she’s come for all her tears
For every little sheep that he ate and sold
For every 13 year old with a tale untold
The Wolf is now drunk – a willing prey
The sheep had only waited for this very day
When it was over, the wolf lay dead
12 shots in the groin and one in the head

[... a scene in an Indian movie]

Genocide...

[Warning: The content of the clip is not for the light hearted]

Genocide

Hounds that howl and devour the dead
Prowled around for flesh and blood
Hell broke loose –Oh! Wails of pain;
Bullets, bombs and chemical rain

Callous demons in cannibal fest,
Raped the doves and burnt their nest;
Stripped the feathers and slit their neck;
Buried in heaps, massacred wreck.

The proud nation fell to dust;
The world watched them moan and rust.
The demons danced in triumphant fest
And thanked Buddha for their conquest.

The Summer Night

digital art by ashok

I walk in circles on my open terrace,

Over the warm terracotta -bare foot.

The night is tepid- winds of furnace;

Summer night – Even the birds are mute.

No sign of rain –the air is dry;

I look up – a cloudless sky.

With no where to hide-the moon is high;

The only riot – the bats that fly.

The mosquitoes menacingly encircle me

Even as the crickets and lizards chant

The town is dark as far as I could see

Powerless, Sleepless- the endless rant…

Tranquility...

a temple by the pond near Valayapatti...

The hoppers...

On the lighter side of the hoppers, check this out.

My first Tag ...The Eleven !

Somehow I have not found time in the past few days for a fresh post...I was merely keeping the blog alive with poetry from the archives. Thanks to Sandya I have at least found something new to post. I have never done a tag-post in my blog before as I had never found them creative or interesting...but today I thought it’s OK since I was requested by a good friend and anyways I didn’t have anything better to post :)

Go here to get the rules…but I have decided not to tag you :) so relax , go ahead and read my answers to Sandya's Q.s...

1. Do you remember your first day in school? - No...but I remember the last day :(

2. Your favorite song which you hum often. – Mostly Ilayaraja’s numbers..Unable to single out any one.

3. Which was your favorite subject in school? - Geography...

4. Are you happy with yourself always, well... most of the time, for what you are today? - Yes

5. Role model in your life? - None

6. Have you got the habit of cursing often?! - No

7. What do you do when you are very happy?- Conversely, Iam happiest when I am designing or Playing music.

8. Do you believe in God or destiny or luck? – I believe that God decides our destiny and Luck!

9. Any regrets in life? - I regret not having documented most my art work during school & college days.

10. A sweet memory which you talk about often? – Sweet memories are the fun I had with my school friends...but I rarely talk about them ;)

11. Do you think you are a good son, daughter, brother, sister, spouse, parent? – I try... but honestly No!...an Architect rarely is :)