A beautiful children’s picture book set in my very own country and doing a wonderful job of rightful cultural representation.

Kesar lives with her little sister Kamal and their parents in the beautiful Rann of Kutch, a salt desert in the western part of India. (It is one of the largest salt deserts in the world.) Kamal doesn’t sleep no matter how many stories her parents tell her at night. When their grandmother comes for a visit and narrates an anecdote to Kesar, this bright girl has a wonderful idea of how she can get her baby sister down for a peaceful night.

I simply loved everything about this book. This story is so amazing! I can’t believe how much content the author packed into this little picture book without making it seem overwhelming. Family values, Indian traditions, sibling connections, parental roles, and local art forms – all find a place in the story. The plot is Indian but the emotions are universal.

The language is quite simple. There are a few Kutchi and Gujarati words used but there is a glossary at the end to help you with the meanings. The author’s note is also pretty detailed and speaks of the background behind the creation of the story and some details about Kutch and its artists.

The illustrations are outstandingly vivid. The clothes and accessories of Kesar and her family are true to Kutchi culture. A special shoutout to the detailing of the women’s jewellery. I adored the way every page was sketched as each sketch pops out of the page. I could stare at these illustrations for ages, they are so gorgeous! I am sure children will love the physical copy of this book for it will be amazing to look at!

If you want a fabulous glimpse into India, one that is true to Indian culture and stays clear of all stereotypes that other books on India seem intent on peddling to Western readers, please give this amazing book a place in your home, school, or library.

Based on the vocabulary and the length, I think this would work very well for little readers aged 4-8.

5 happy stars.


My thanks to Yali Books, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), and NetGalley for the DRC of “Kesar and the Lullaby Birds”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

As Kesar and her family was getting ready bed, baby sister Kamal, no matter how hard anyone tried, would not go to sleep and cried for all the village to hear.

A special visit, an old Indian folktale, and gifts from Kesar’s Ba (grandmother in Kutchi, an Indian language) sparked an idea. Kesar volunteered to tuck Kamal in that night. Will her idea work and will Kamal sleep well?

A vibrantly beautiful story interwoven with traditional Indian folk art makes this a cultural delight for the eyes. Details from the Author’s Note dives deeper into the Indian folk art. I also loved that it was Kesar who solved the problem an entire village couldn’t!

Let me just say that I love the illustrations in this story. They are vibrant and captivating. The story itself is sweet and rich with culture and love. Recommend.

It never ceases to amaze me how children's picture books can pack so much power. This story was absolutely beautiful and fantastic with phenomenal, engaging artwork. I will definitely be purchasing this in hard cover when I can.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Oh, I wish the story could be longer because I really enjoyed it; it was magical, and I imagine it could be a fantasy book. I loved the illustration because it was so cute and represented Indian culture.

What a beautiful story filled with cultural depth, beautiful illustrations, and a lovely message.

This book is about a young girl named Kesar who lives in a small village in India with her parents and baby sister. The baby is having trouble sleeping and her crying is keeping everyone up at night. After hearing stories from her grandmother Kesar gets an idea that will help the baby sleep.

Such a lovely story.

Completely surrendered to this story.
This is the story of Kamal, a baby who decides not to sleep at night..until her sister, Kesar, decides to help her parents rest, having an idea from a story told by her grandmother.

This is the story that inspires her to take care of her sister and, perhaps, have the solution for her parents to rest.

In addition to being a wonderful story, the illustrations are spectacular, full of vibrant colors as India is used to.

It is a book full of cultural richness, as the birds that appear in the book are inspired by the fabrics with birds that are traditionally sewn by hand, called Kathaa Beej. I'm in love with India, as some of you know, and I couldn't resist this children's book.

Such wonderful, vibrant colors! Thank you, Debasmita Dasgupta for your delightful illustrations!
Aditi Oza tells the story of a wakeful baby, a sleepless family (and neighbors!), a very talented grandmother, and a resourceful big sister.
A well told story, but I had to read it a second time as I got so caught up in the illustrations! A wonderful book of delights that teaches the rest of us a little about the people represented in this story.
There is even a tiny dictionary of the Kutchi and Gujarati words used in this telling as well as a couple of pages explaining the gorgeous folk art and crafts practiced in this desert area of western India.
This needs to be in every local library and read WITH children of ALL ages!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book copy from Yali Books, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles via NetGalley. Thank you!

What a beautiful book! The story is so sweet and culturally rich, kids will see their own families and people they know in this book, while also learning about a different culture. The illustrations are simply stunning, and the details in the clothing and sewing work are absolutely gorgeous. I would definitely buy this for my family.

Kesar and the Lullaby Birds is a very sweet and heartwarming story about an older daughter that helps her younger sister sleep by telling a story using beautiful cloth animal puppets. The cover art is lovely and immediately caught my attention. The illustrations and pictures are also very beautiful and portrayed Indian culture very well. I love the Gujarati representation and use of Gujarati words in the book! This book will definitely help diversify children's libraries.

I loved the illustrations and representation in this sweet picture book. This would make a great bedtime story or book to read about family. Highly recommend!

3,5 stars.

Kesar and the Lullaby Birds is a very cute story about a little family whose baby won't sleep and the older child who uses some clever storytelling and folk art to help remedy that. The art is vibrant, full of colour, and quite cute. The story is a bit uneven in places, but it is still very much enjoyable. Overall, this is well worth the read.

The book is beautifully illustrated. I can imagine the artistry that went into both presenting the story vibrantly and accurately. I would love to have this in my bookshelf. The only improvement that I might suggest to play around a bit with word flow. It is often easy to read books to kids with a little bit of flow. Not necessarily rhyming words, But if the sentences next to each other have similar word flow.

I thought this was a beautiful picture book. This book is about Kesar who lives in a village in India with her parents and baby sister. Her baby sister is having trouble sleeping and her crying is keeping everyone up. Even the village, but when Kesar's grandmother (Ba) comes to visits she shows Kesar some stories that have been passed down and told for many years. Then Kesar gets an idea to help her sister sleep. I love how this is a positive book about siblings and how the older sister wants to help her little sister.

A delightful bedtime book that also offers a glimpse into the local culture near the Great Rann of Kutch, near Gujarat, India, The fun story revolves around one creative girl who uses kathaa beej, handmade birds, to lull her restless sister to sleep. Highly recommended!

This book was a very cute and fun read! The illustrations and graphics used were very beautiful and I also loved the choice of colors used. This storybook follows Kesar and her baby sister Kamal, where the latter has trouble sleeping. When Kesar's ba visits one day and tells her a story about a woman whose embroidered animals came to life, Kesar gets an idea on how to best placate her little sister's fussing before bedtime--all it takes are beutiful birds fashioned into cloth puppets and a story.

It was super fascinating also to learn more about kathaa beej, or the traditionally handcrafted cloth bird dangler in India. I really love how this folk art formed the heart of this story. Recommended!

This is a beautiful story about a little girl named Kesar who lives the Great Rann of Kutch in India. When her baby sister, Kamal, won’t sleep, Kesar has a brilliant plan. She gives her tired parents a break, and uses beautiful strung fabric birds gifted to her by her grandmother to help lull her sister to bed. Kesar uses the birds and stories inspired by her grandmother’s stories to put on a puppet show that helps Kamal fall asleep each night.

The vibrant pictures depicting this part of India were absolutely stunning. My 4-year-old twins were mesmerized by the artwork, and entertained by the story.

This is such a culturally rich and gorgeous book. Thank you NetGalley and Yali books for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This beautifully illustrated picture book tells the story of a little girl and her family who live in the Kutch region of India. The book is filled with traditional clothing and artwork which introduces readers to the culture of the people in this region as well as a bit about their history. The author explains in her note at the end that she grew up not far from this region and admires the culture and beautiful crafts of the people. I think this is a great book to use as an opportunity to teach children about other cultures and to appreciate the beautiful art created by different people around the world. I would recommend this book to teachers and families of children in the age 4-9 range. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this great book!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange of my honest opinion.

This picture book is cute, fun, with a lovely story and a bit of information about Kutchi's culture. But, most importantly and what I enjoyed the most, were the illustrations! They are stunning! I loved the patterns, the colours, the brightness, the different materials... everything!

I could look at them forever and still appreciate the beauty!

This book has such beautiful illustrations and is such a sweet story. It would add cultural diversity to any library. I appreciated the glossary with the Kutchi and Gujarati words and meanings and the note from the Author.