★ “Beautifully compiled and gently informative, this is an exceptional part of a must-have series for board-book collections.” -- Booklist, starred review Namaste! Let's explore India! Wake to a myna bird's song, dine on dal, count mango trees, and more. Even learn words in Hindi with pronunciation guides throughout the story. Part of the Barefoot Books Our World series - Written by Indian author Meera Sriram and illustrated by Neethi - Endmatter provides more insights into life in India PreS-Gr 2-In the "Our World" series, this book shows scenes from India, then sentences in both English and Hindi, with helpful pronunciation guides close to the sentence. The illustrations are as colorful as saris, showing beautiful floral patterns on clothing, warm interiors, and cozy mealtime scenes. Within this one board book, children will have a sense of the clothing, jewelry, sights, and sounds of another country, vividly evoked by paintings and in language, and stamped with the love of the families shown. VERDICT This series offers solid glimpses of faraway places, more poetry than a tour guide, but evocative and inviting.α(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. “Within this one board book, children will have a sense of the clothing, jewelry, sights, and sounds of another country, vividly evoked by paintings and in language, and stamped with the love of the families shown” – School Library Journal Drawing on both its creators’ roots, this entry in the brilliant Our World series introduces the nation of India and its culture by allowing little readers to “spend a day” there. It begins with a friendly “Namaste!” as a mother and daughter greet the morning. Neethi’s bright colors and striking contrasts are a welcoming visual hook, delivering in double-spreads all the vibrancy associated with Indian art as mother and daughter hit the usual beats of a child’s day, playing, cleaning, eating, walking, playing again, and finally sleeping. All of their experiences give glimpses of the country’s landscape, wildlife, architecture, fashion, food, technology, and more—all of it radiating beauty and joy. Naturally inserted into Sriram’s gently rhythmic text are common Hindi words ( namaste, kala tika, dal ) and numbers (one through three), each of which comes paired with the Hindi script and a pronunciation guide, and two back matter spreads expand just enough on the concepts introduced within. Beautifully compiled and gently informative, this is an exceptional part of a must-have series for board-book collections. — Ronny Khuri   Meera Sriram grew up in Chennai, India and moved to the U.S in 1999. An engineer in the past, she now enjoys writing, leading early literacy programs and advocating for diverse bookshelves. She has also written A Gift for Amma and Dumpling Day for Barefoot Books, and contributed a story to Water: A Deep Dive of Discovery. Learn more at www.meerasriram.com. Neethi is an illustrator and muralist based out of Bangalore, India. Bright pattern-infused scenes, with a touch of fantasy, are a recurring theme in her work. She once won first place for her rendition of "The Monkey and the Cap Seller" in kindergarten. Neethi has an irrational fear of ellipses. For more information, visit www.neethi.co.in.