Published By: Mango (DC Books)

Words: Praba Ram and Meera Sriram

Illustrations: Lavanya Karthik

Rs 245

I am back with some delicious book chat after a long long time and it’s not even about a picture book! Holler holler, run for cover?! Please don’t (!), because the book I have here is one that each of us should try and lay our hands on: Endangered Animals of India – a wonderfully satisfying treat from two of the most sensitive children’s book authors amidst us – Praba Ram and Meera Sriram (this is the fourth book they have co-authored).

This no-fuss book is divided into seven sections covering the vast diversity of Indian’s geographical relief and the corresponding natural habitats. It features ten endangered and critically endangered animals from these regions and talks about everything that you would ever want to know about them, including, naturally, how we are responsible for getting them to the brink of extinction.

This book is PACKED with trivia too, like why dholes are called whistling dogs, or that the Malabar civets have never been seen on trees, or – oh c’mon, I am not going to give it all away!

The tone is light, breezy and easy, and conversational at places:

“An inner fur layer with short hair keeps them warm in the chilly waters, while an outer glossy layer is striped or spotted. A shiny snug-fit perfect for a catwalk you’d think!”

And if I may tell you the most awwww! moment of the book, it’s this:

“Let’s leave him (guess!) alone, so he can be around longer – some trees to hang out and bamboo to eat are all he needs!”

The animal-skin textured look of the paper used couldn’t be more suited to a book like this. Lavanya Karthik’s gorgeous illustrations done in simple colour pencil (or is it crayons) hues are incredibly life-like. Remarkably well done as they are, they look both sublime and disturbing at the same time, considering that some of these beautiful animals may not be around for us to see in future, if we don’t act now. Just look deep into the eyes of the black bug and you’ll see what I mean; they speak back to you. I wish we had more illustrations in the book (you’ll really be left begging for more).

The book touches upon the various factors that have led to the decline in the numbers of these animals – deforestation, poaching, human greed, urbanization, reducing grasslands, or, as in the case of the snow leopard, even a decline in the numbers of prey available to feed on. I was happy to see the authors mention the cases of celebrities involved in hunting black bucks; references like these throw up options for many discussions with our children around how unconsciously or at times through our willfully callous acts, we humans upset the very delicate balance in the food chain and the ecosystem. And how our actions jeopardize our own future too (as the book explains in the context of pygmy hogs, for instance):

“Preserving these grasslands is equally important to us. They absorb excess rainwater and help control floods in the forests. Being a vulnerable lot, loss of habitat affects these hogs much more than any other animal living in the same habitat. So, when their numbers dwindle, the pygmy hogs are actually sounding an alarm to save all diverse life forms of that ecosystem. So, we better keep counting!”

For me the most poignant sentence in the book was this when I came to the word ‘extinct’:

“One of the swiftest land mammals, the black bucks can even outrun their natural predator, the extinct Indian cheetah.”

A dismaying reality check of what we have done, what we’ve allowed to happen, and what we continue to do to so many other precious spokes in our ecosystem with rampant disregard. And as author and reviewer Artnavy points out in her review about the sub-title of the book, on Saffron Tree,

“Threatened in their own home” reads the sub- title. It is indeed saddening that there is need for such a book- that nature’s beautiful creations do not feel secure in their own homes.”

Praba and Meera’s depth of research (a large bulk of it from the IUCN, as the authors point out in the introduction, which, btw, is lucidly written. If you have time for just a couple of pages, let it be the introduction) and details takes the reader right to the scene of action. Sample this gentle and poised description:

“She slides on her belly and hauls herself awkwardly. She waits on the sandy bank for her baby to creep out of the nest. With jaws too narrow to carry her newborn, she gently nudges it towards the water.” (Guess, again, which animal! Guess, guess guess!)

If it’s sensitizing your child that you’re seeking, this book has enough fodder to keep a young mind engaged for hours and enlightened for life. If it’s information you want your child to add to her knowledge bank, this book will not disappoint.

Oh. And I bet you didn’t know that gharials pose absolutely NO threat to humans, right?! One more reason to grab a copy of this book: to be better informed about the ecosystem which we are a part of, but for which we often forget our critical role in nurturing, maintaining and restoring its lost (and losing) balance.

Leaving you with this excerpt from the section on the Nilgiri tahr (because my daughter here proudly shows off her much-loved tshirt):

“…around a thousand are in the Eravikulam National Park of Kerala alone. Tourists flock the area to capture images of the tahr standing fearlessly along those rocks, against dense fog and mist. This enchanting sight gives it a local name, ‘cloud goat’! Conservationists often remind forest officials and tourists to respect protective measures, especially in national parks.”

Makes me look back on our visit to the park and reflect on whether we acted responsibly there or not. I think we did. We always do.

p.s – this book will be an invaluable resource for your child’s school project on endangered animals, if that’s what you want most from a book!